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CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — First lady Kathleen Sandoval is encouraging Nevadans to wear blue jeans on Wednesday as part of a campaign to promote Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Denim Day.
The Denim Day campaign evolved in the 1990s from a ruling by Italy's Supreme Court. Justices overturned a rape conviction, saying that because the victim was wearing tight jeans she must have helped her attacker remove her pants, thereby implying consent.
The next day women in the Italian Parliament wore jeans in a show of solidarity with the victim.
Denim Day has since spread to the United States as a way to raise awareness of sexual violence through education.
Sandoval says this year's focus will be on educating the community at large on the legal definition of consent.
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