Sexual Assault Prevention On College Campuses

Sexual assault is defined as “the sexual exploitation, forcible penetration, or an act of sexual contact on the body of another person, male or female, without his or her consent” (Appalachian State, 2015). Currently, at least 1 in 4 women will experience it and more than 70% of them will be assaulted by somebody they know (Sarah Lawrence, 2014). Female sexual assault cases are typically heard of more often than male, but this issue does occur with both sexes. The focus of this paper will be on sexual assaults that happen on college campuses. For a sensitive topic like this, it’s very hard to determine the exact cause(s). Society tells women not to wear revealing clothes or act in a suggestive manner, which leads to victim-blaming. With victim-blaming comes the resulting issue of unreported assault cases. In fact, less than 5% of attempted and completed assaults are reported to authorities (Lam). Victims feel they will be blamed for the situation no matter what, so they don’t step forward, which puts their health in jeopardy. Others say it is completely the fault of the perpetrator. There is an extremely fine line between the two. Then there’s the issue of alcohol consumption, which is an increasing problem with college sexual assaults. 89% of assaults are due to incapacitated individuals who are unable to consent or get away from an offender (Lam). Many colleges try to sweep sexual assaults under the rug. This is a big issue, especially for the victims. Only 17% of students found guilty of sexual assault are expelled and 26% are suspended. These numbers are a problem, considering that there are guilty students being let off the hook. David Lisak of the University of Massachusetts-Boston’s survey found that 6% of men who committed forced sexual acts were undetected, repeat offenders. (Kingkade, 2014) Students not being punished for doing this are let loose to do it again! Campaigns against sexual assault have normally been aimed towards students directly, essentially telling them to keep their hands to themselves. However, a new angle is to target onlookers in an attempt to enforce bystander intervention. Bystanders are defined as “individuals who observe violence or witness the conditions that perpetuate violence. They are not directly involved but have the choice to intervene, speak up, or do something about it.” (Stop Sexual Violence) Even the White House released a PSA asking students to step in if they suspect another student is in sexual danger. The National Institute of Justice found that almost 2,500 colleges included in a study did not have a policy in place to deal with sexual assault (RAINN, 2009). Thanks to the Obama Administration, there has also been a larger push for policies and enforcing regulations regarding sexual assault on college campuses nationwide. If sexual assault is not recognized as a serious problem and efforts aren’t made to solve it, college campuses won’t have fully safe learning environments. The push for bystander intervention could be the spark needed to get everyone’s attention. This not only helps take the blame away from the victim, but it tells all students they have a personal responsibility to help their fellow peers in dangerous situations. They don’t have to directly get involved, but they should be prepared to call somebody else who can help. Greek organizations on campuses have also started taking action against sexual violence during associated events. The University of Virginia has proposed the idea of sober workers during parties. The idea is that there will be at least three members from the fraternity walking around to and monitoring everyone’s activities. If they sense someone is in danger or too intoxicated to make decisions, they can intervene. Sober working has picked up on other college campuses as well.

References:

Campus Safety | RAINN | Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.rainn.org/public-policy/campus-safety

Smith, T. (2014, Nov. 21). Colleges Straddle Line Between Assault Prevention And Victim-Blaming. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/2014/11/21/365460145/colleges-straddle-line-between-assault-prevention-and-victim-blaming

Lam, M. (n.d.). Here's Your Talking-Points Memo on Campus Sexual Assault. Retrieved from http://www.aauw.org/resource/campus-sexual-assault-talking-points/

Kingkade, T. (n.d.). Fewer Than One-Third Of Campus Sexual Assault Cases Result In Expulsion. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/29/campus-sexual-assault_n_5888742.html

Sexual Assault and College Campuses - Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.slc.edu/offices-services/security/assault/statistics.html

Stop Sexual Violence. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.health.ny.gov/publications/2040

Gray, E. (2015, Jan. 13). Why UVA's New Frat Rules May Not Make Much Difference. Retrieved January from http://time.com/3663956/uva-rape-frat-rules-rolling-stone/