On Tuesday, Oct. 8, at 7:30-9:30 pm, The Student Life Cinema and kNOw More are partnering up to present It Happened Here, a film about victims of sexual assault on college campuses. This powerful film highlights survivors that struggled to be understood or cared for by their universities. Ultimately, five college-aged women get personal and share their stories with hopes to create change on college campuses nationwide.
It Happened Here was directed by Lisa F. Jackson and produced by Marjorie Schwartz Nielsen who sat down with victims from large universities like Amherst, Uconn and Vanderbilt to learn about the extensive steps these women had to take for justice. These particular women they spoke to, have chosen to take their terrible circumstances and use them to not only make themselves stronger but help others do the same. One of the steps they took was to file a Clery, Title IX and civil lawsuit against UConn. They have also written newspapers and open letters and hosted events such as Take Back the Night and The Clothesline Project to create awareness and push universities to revise their policies.
In recent years, the subject of sexual assault and domestic violence has been in conversation more than ever. With significant movements like the “Me Too” movement and the revisions under the Title IX law, the U.S. has had no excuse but to face this horrific reality of how frequently these events occur. We can celebrate the progress that has been made but also move forward to build upon this progress. By bringing this documentary to FSU, the team at kNOw More intends to do just that.
Courtesy: Instagram (@FSUkNOwmoresab)
Our team at kNOw More was created as a resource for students to help educate them on how to get help when they need it. One of the dedicated kNOw More members, Events Chair Minnah Stein, has put a lot of work into bringing It Happened Here to campus because of its educational value. In high school, Minnah realized that no one was preparing students on how to deal with this kind of violence in college. “I felt like all my friends and I were statistics and had no idea,” she explained. This frustration drove her to educate students in her county through the film It Happened Here. Now, she brings it to FSU for the same purpose. Minnah thinks it’s especially valuable because this documentary “focuses so much on the process: how to file a Title IX complaint, how to go to the police, how to approach your school and how your school should respond.” Because of this, she hopes it can educate a lot of students on how they can receive help when they need it.
Administrative chair Jenna Hurst added that “this conversation is something that’s not always talked about, many times women are swept under the rug or the allegations are mishandled and it’s important students know the proper reporting process and where they can find these resources.” It’s for this reason, following the showing of the documentary, kNOw More has put together a panel for FSU students to ask questions about how FSU specifically handles these events. All are welcome to attend the showing and the panel, or just the panel, that will begin at 8:45 pm. The panel will be comprised of a variety of viewpoints on the subject, such as Ryan Masotti from Beta Theta Pi, Hannah Llende from PRIDE, Ahmad Daraldik from SGA, Sarah Castillo from the Victim Advocate Program as well as Terri Brown, the FSU Chief of Police.
October is Domestic Violence Awareness month so your attendance is a powerful way to get the month going in the right direction and learn more about how you can make a difference. Throughout the month, kNOw More will continue raising awareness through Healthy Relationships Week (October 21-25) and other events with partners such as SGA and Green Dot. You can also join them in support on Oct. 24 for Purple Thursday.
Check out the trailer here. And if you can’t make it to the showing, It Happened Here is also available on Netflix, Google Play, Amazon and iTunes.
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual misconduct, FSU is here for you. You can file a report or speak to someone at any time, who can help both on and off-campus. For more information on these resources, visit kNOw More.
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