On April 29, a crowd decked out in denim on the plaza outside San Francisco Police Department headquarters wasn’t there to honor the birthplace of Levi Strauss & Co., the iconic blue jeans maker. Rather, SFPD Chief Derrick Lew joined Mayor Daniel Lurie and San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins for a Denim Day commemoration. They stood along with sexual assault survivors and community supporters to speak out against harmful myths surrounding sexual assault victims.

Since 1999, the last Wednesday of April, which is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, has been designated Denim Day in response to an Italian court citing a victim’s tight jeans as cause to overturn a rape conviction. In response, victims, survivors and their supporters dress in denim to show unity and to educate the community about mistruths associated with sexual assault.