Policymakers Take Courageous Stand
Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators Starts by Believing
Legislators across the state of Massachusetts pledged to Start by Believing in April! This effort, spearheaded by the bipartisan, bicameral MA Caucus of Women Legislators, is a first-of-its-kind endeavor incorporating multiple legislators and social media. 
Representative Natalie Higgins, a survivor and former rape crisis counselor, was the impetus for the groundbreaking initiative. 
The Massachusetts Legislature, led by the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators, has been honoring Denim Day for several years. The Women’s Caucus had been looking for new ways to center the entire month of April around Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and Start by Believing Day was a perfect framing/perspective to kick off the month lifting up survivor voices.
 
I am grateful to get to partner with the Women’s Caucus and lead the Sexual Violence Task Force, as a former rape crisis counselor and survivor myself. And no matter how good we are at framing Denim Day and telling the history of the day, folks might forget that we’re still facing all of those same stigmas and victim blaming, thirty years later.
 
Start by Believing Day helped us make all of our April outreach and awareness so much stronger. We are looking forward to growing the ways we honor it in the years to come.

– Representative Natalie Higgins, 4th Worchester
Other legislators joined the effort, by posting on their own Twitter and Facebook accounts: 
Congratulations to the Massachusetts Caucus of Women Legislators for galvanizing policy leaders to raise awareness of sexual assault and highlight the importance of believing survivors. We look forward to seeing how you honor Start by Believing Day in 2024!