Campaign Launches to Educate Local Bars on Sexual Assault Prevention

On November 1, the Blue Bench, Denver's only sexual assault prevention organization, will launch its fifth annual Change on Tap campaign, in which partnering bars and restaurants receive educational materials, resources and training on how to combat sexual harassment and assault in their establishments.

"We know that alcohol doesn't cause sexual violence. Perpetrators do, but it's used as a tool to commit violence," says Blue Bench director of philanthropy Kaylyn Fern.

The campaign also promotes the Safe Bars training program, a two-hour session in which the Blue Bench workforce visits establishments and identifies hot spots where violence has a higher potential to occur.

Fern emphasizes that sexual assault involving alcohol consumption is at an all-time high across the country. "I think it's just kind of an ongoing epidemic. No matter what city you're in, it happens everywhere," she notes.

That's why partnerships with local bars, distilleries and social organizations such as Denver Pub Crawl and Mile High Spirits are crucial to ensuring the safety of patrons. "Because of the younger crowd that we have in Denver and the very social community, it's just really important to make sure that people know how to say something if something doesn't look right," Fern notes.

Denver Pub Crawl, a longstanding Blue Bench partner and Safe Bar-certified company, works with around 45 bars in the city's most concentrated nightlife areas, including LoDo, South Broadway and RiNo. "We're the only local company that does pub crawls like we do on a local scale. We're an additional set of eyes and ears in bars we partner with, so it's really important for us to be able to notice things," says Ty Sondag, Denver Pub Crawl CEO.

This year's Change on Tap campaign comes with an added sense of urgency following a 45 percent cut to a federal grant called the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA). This has resulted, and will continue to result, in a decrease in Blue Bench's ability to provide crucial mitigating and educational services.

"We've supported over 450,000 survivors and community members. We work every day to do what we can to prevent violence from happening," says Fern. The Blue Bench reports that approximately one in two women, one in two transgender or nonbinary individuals, and one in three men will face sexual violence in their lifetimes.

In major metropolitan areas like Denver, where the drinks flow and the nightlife scene is vibrant, taking tangible measures to lower these numbers is essential. However, "we were surprised to find out that so few of the bars, restaurants and other venues in the Denver area were Safe Bar-certified, because it's obviously an important issue," says Sondag.

The Blue Bench has been operating in Metro Denver for 41 years, offering everything from a 24-hour crisis hotline to specialized therapy and case management services. Now the organization is asking for support to be able to retain these vital services. "Instead of spending that daily $5 on coffee, I would strongly suggest people consider [donating to] victim-service organizations," Fern says.

For more information about the Blue Bench, including access to crisis hotlines and sexual assault resources, visit thebluebench.org.

To learn more about Denver Pub Crawl, visit crawldenver.co or follow it on Instagram @denverpubcrawl.