420 pairs of women’s underwear cover Copacabana beach in anti-rape protest

The U.S. is not the only country where sexual assault has been pushed to the fore of national dialogue. Protesters in Brazil have taken to a famous beach to express outrage over a recent case of alleged rape that has gripped the nation.

Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro was covered Monday by 420 red and white pairs of women’s underwear in protest of violence against women. That number was chosen by non-governmental organization Rio de Paz, which organized the public display to represent the estimated 420 women who are raped every 72 hours in Brazil. That totals around 50,000 rapes per year.

“There are almost 50,000 cases a year, within the context that these are under-reported. It is suspected that this 50,000 corresponds to 10 percent of the cases which actually take place,” said Antonio Carlos Costa, founder of Rio de Paz, according to teleSUR.

Brazil has seen a number of protests nationwide after a 16-year-old girl was allegedly gang raped by 33 men. A cell phone video of the attack has been released by Brazilian police.

The underwear on the beach was accompanied by large photographs of 20 women by Marcio Freitas from an exhibition entitled “I will never be silenced.”

“We are here protesting, calling on the authorities to combat impunity against this criminal practice and also to implement public policies in poor Brazilian communities, where the women are most vulnerable to the violation of their rights,” Costa said.

This story was originally published June 7, 2016 at 4:29 PM with the headline "420 pairs of women’s underwear cover Copacabana beach in anti-rape protest."