April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Here at West Virginia University, several activities have been planned to raise much-needed awareness about the prevalent issue. Sexual assault and abuse is “any type of sexual activity that you do not agree to,” including inappropriate touching ,vaginal, anal, or oral penetration, sexual intercourse that you say no to, rape, attempted rape and child molestation, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. It can be verbal or visual or anything that coherces a person into experiencing unwanted sexual contact or attention.
Just below 3 percent of college women become victims of rape in a 9-month academic period, according to the US Department of Justice. When this figure is translated to a five year college career, it means one in five women will experience rape during college. The Justice Department also compiled some other frightening statistics. In between 80 and 90 percent of rapes, the victim and assailant knew each other. Half of all student victims do not label the incident as rape. This is more likely when no weapon was used, no sign of physical injury is present, and no alcohol is involved. Less than 5 percent of rapes of college students are reported to campus authorities and/or law enforcement.
To combat the problem, women who are victims of sexual assault have to report the crime. Alerting the authorities will lessen the chance that their assailant will repeat the same act again. Women should use common sense tips like being aware of their surroundings, projecting confidence, not walking alone and being wary of drugs and alcohol. They should also know how to defend themselves. The WVU Student Recreation Center offers a self-defense class designed especially for women, “Fight Like a Girl.” But they must also know that sexual assault is never their fault, they are worthy of respect and they don’t “deserve what they get.”
Bill O’Reilly, when describing the rape and murder of a woman in New York City, felt it was important for his listeners to know what she was wearing. On the August 2 edition of The Radio Factor with Bill O’Reilly, he said, “She was 5-foot-2, 105 pounds, wearing a miniskirt and a halter top with a bare midriff. Now, again, there you go. So every predator in the world is gonna pick that up at two in the morning.” He also made sure to point out that “she’s out of her mind, drunk” and “moronic.”
Even if a woman is wearing revealing clothes, walking alone and under the influence of alcohol, sexual assault is not her fault. It is irrelevant what she was wearing. No behavior is ever worthy of provoking an attack. Women never ask for it, and they never deserve it.
Preventing sexual assault also takes the education of those who become the assailants. WVU could devote some of its sexual assault prevention efforts at men. Among some, it’s considered acceptable to use alcohol in aiding sexual assault, and some believe that it’s not rape unless it’s violent. All-male peer education classes have been shown to decrease beliefs in these rape myths . Minnesota’s Star Tribune described an experience by a student at the University of Minnesota who had been through one of these programs. Tyler Jones was drinking with friends when one said, “Hey, see that girl over there. She’s almost drunk. Not quite drunk enough. … What shot should I buy her?” Jones retorted, “Man, that’s not right. That’s rape. That’s sexual assault.”
His friend was shocked to be called out because his behavior has become a social norm. Students need to call out their friends who allow these myths to persist. When students hear remarks like Bill O’Reilly’s, they should ask “Why is it relevant what she was wearing or what she had to drink?” When they hear friends blaming the victim, like in the recent case of Rihanna and Chris Brown, they should argue that no one ever asks to be assaulted. Exchanges between men, like that of Tyler Jones and his friend, could be an especially powerful way to decrease sexual assault. Stopping sexual assault requires women to know how to protect themselves and not be afraid to report it. It also requires the elimination of rape myth acceptability in the campus culture.
