The month of April is sexual assault awareness month not only here on the UNH campus but across the country. This wasn’t officially recognized until 2001 but UNH, specifically SHARPP, has been helping prevent sexual violence for years before that. April is right around the corner and everyone here at UNH has the power and responsibility to help stop rape and sexual abuse.
This issue is something that people avoid talking about, hoping that it will all just go away. But doing this doesn’t get us anywhere. In order to make progress, we need to educate, speak up, and support. Educate boys that they are not entitled to women’s bodies, create a society where survivors feel safe speaking up, and giving unwavering support to them without ever putting the blame on them.
The statistics of sexual assault are harrowing and prove that this is something we should all care about. 1 out of every 6 women and 1 out of every 33 men are victims of sexual assault (RAINN.com) What’s even scarier is it is 3 times for likely to happen to women attending college. Look around at your group of friends; chances are one of them has been raped or will be at some point in their lifetime. Understandably, most victims don’t feel comfortable coming forward to report the crime and social stigma and the justice system is usually to blame for that. Out of every 1000 rapes, only 6 of those rapists will be incarcerated. 994 will walk free (RAINN.com).
None of that is okay. Everyone at UNH is in the position to break the silence. In honor of sexual assault awareness month, join the UNH community at these events on campus
1. Stepping Out Against Violence at UNH
This is the 6th annual antiviolence walk. It will take place on April 13 from 12:30 to 2 pm. this year. The event is sponsored by SHARPP and will include informational tables, reading of UNH’s Community Proclamation Against Violence, a student call to action to end violence at UNH and a 20-minute walk around campus.
2. Blue String at UNH
The Blue string is a campaign that supports and symbolizes men who are sexually abused in childhood by replacing one of their guitar strings with a blue string. The event will take place on April 4th at 8 p.m. in the Strafford room.
3. The Clothesline Project
The clothesline project is nationwide and happens twice a year, October and April. Students are encouraged to decorate a t-shirt and they are displayed around campus in support of survivors. On some of the t-shirts, survivors tell their story and others they offer encouragement and hope. The next workshop for making a t-shirt is Tuesday, March 28th from 12:30-2.
4. Be there
The most important thing you can do for someone who chooses to tell you their story is to listen. In a society where the first thing we do is victim blame and put doubt in the survivors’ mind, it is important to show that you believe them. It can be hard to know what to say but understand that they probably don’t feel like themselves. What they’re going through is traumatic and survivors of assault respond in a variety of ways. There is no “right” way to react to a sexual assault.
Things like the Brock Turner case, where he got off with only a slap on the wrist and 1 month in jail proves that there is still a long way to go. But other people show that things are changing, including Joe Biden’s open letter to the Stanford sexual assault survivor, Lady Gaga singing “Til It Happens to You” at the Oscars in 2016, and Obama starting the “It’s On Us” campaign in 2014 and before he left office signing into law the Sexual Assault Survivors’ Rights Act. These are minor steps but it is finally making people talk about the issue and addressing the real problem – the rapist not the victim’s “role”.
Joe Biden’s Open Letter: https://www.buzzfeed.com/tomnamako/joe-biden-writes-an-open-letter-to-stanford-survivor?bftwnews&utm_term=.hvR3djjbA#.epMaPMM3w
Lady Gaga’s Performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FumGpsvr9DI
Sexual Assault Survivors’ Rights Act: https://www.shaheen.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2016-02-23%20%20Shaheen%20%20Sexual%20Assualt%20Survivors%20Rights%20Act%20%20Final%20Text.pdf