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Yes Means Yes

The Association of American Universities’ new Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Misconduct reports that approximately 23 percent of college students have reported instances of sexual assault.  It should be noted that this percentage does not include students who didn’t report instances of sexual assault.

Susan Hua is the Title IX Coordinator in the CSUN Equity & Diversity Office. Title IX is a federal statute stating that “no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” Because CSUN receives Federal financial assistance, this statute applies to the whole university.

A recent incident of sexual assault during CSUN’s Big Show on October 3rd, has led to growing concerns over the safety of students on and off campus, as well as what should be done to prevent future attacks.

“I think these last couple of years we’ve felt that we really need to take a collective stance and position that these types of behaviors are not tolerated and not acceptable,” Hua said.

Measures are being taken to ensure that CSUN employees and students are informed of the issue at hand.

“CSUN employees are also required, just as our students, to take a training course,” Hua said.  “[The course includes] sexual assault prevention, what consent means, what the laws are that apply, how to speak about rape culture, and recognizing that [students and employees] play an integral part in sustaining a safer campus community.”

As far as dealing with sexual assault when it does happen, there are also resources available on campus to students who need assistance.

“I think our role in that is to help find ways to process that and [allow survivors of sexual assault to] heal on their own timeline,” Hua said. “We have hired, in the university, a campus care advocate, who is housed in our student health center.  She functions and acts as an advocate and confidential resource for survivors who need advice and want to talk to someone who can keep what they talk about confidential.”

Melissa Realegeno is a former member of Project D.A.T.E. and the current coordinator of the Peer Education programs in the University Counseling Services.

Realegeno advised students to “download safety apps, be aware of your surroundings, know your limits of alcohol, walk with confidence, know where you’re going, have your keys ready to go, and walk with someone you know.”

“[Sexual assault] can happen to anyone,” Relegeno said. “People assume that it’s just a women problem, but no, it’s everyone’s issue.  It’s about educating people and trying to understand the situation more, instead of assuming what happened or assuming it’s what they’re thinking, when sometimes it’s really hard to understand the psychological point of it all.”

Hua and Relegeno recommended that discussions of sexual assault should begin within families, before students head off to college, where many experience independence for the first time and struggle to figure out their own identity.

“It would be great to have pipelines in between high schools and higher institutions to have that kind of dialogue,” Hua said, “and those kind of efforts be comprehensive, instead of reactive if something happens.”

Moderator: Sara Vong

Anchor: Stephanie Lopez
Producer: Teresa Barrientos
Reporter: James Lindsay
Social Media Editor: Veronica Perez
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Sexual Assaults on College Campuses – A Growing Concern

Sexual assault on college campuses has become a growing concern nationwide.

One in five female college students are sexually assaulted, according to the Campus Sexual Assault Study published by the Department of Justice in 2007, based on interviews with 5000 women between 2005 and 2007.  Most of those women said they did not report the assault to law enforcement, often because they didn’t want anyone to know what had happened.

“There are a lot of things tied to that,” said Sari Lipsett, coordinator for the California Coalition on Sexual Assault (CALCASA). “People are scared that they are going to be stamped with a label, and no one will respect them or look at them the same way, or they will be viewed as a weak person if they come forward and report the abuse that happened to them.”

President Obama’s recent call to action seeks to raise awareness about rape on college campuses. College students are particularly vulnerable, said a report prepared by the White House Council on Women and Girls. The dynamics of college life adds to the problem, as many victims are abused while they’re drunk or under the influence of drugs, passed out, or otherwise incapacitated. The Campus Sexual Assault Study reported at least half of sexual assaults involved the use of alcohol or drugs by the perpetrator, the victim, or both.

In California, Sen. Kevin de Leon (D – Los Angeles) has introduced a bill that would require colleges and universities to adopt uniform definitions of sexual assault and similar policies for reporting and preventing attacks.

CSUN student Rachel Klein said another student sexually assaulted her off campus. She said she was coerced by the man, who was an acquaintance, into having sex after he threatened to share a provocative picture she had sent him.

“I just gave in because I didn’t know what else to do,” Klein said.

Despite the fact that Klein agreed to a sexual act with someone she knew, what happened to her can be considered rape, said Maggie Stoicof, director of Project D.A.T.E. The Peer Education and Prevention Project, run by the University Counseling Center, reports that 85 percent of college campus rapes are committed by someone the victim knows.

“There are so many ways that somebody can lose consent,” Stoicof said. “Clearly he was intimidating her, and she was coerced and forced to this. It was not at her own will and that does constitute as rape. Consent means mind, body, soul, completely. You want to be involved in that act, with that person, at that very moment.”

“The whole time I was in that situation,” Klein said, ” my body was there, but my mind was not.”

But Klein said she had a negative experience when she reported the incident to the police.

Proper training of law enforcement and other officials on how to deal with reports of sexual violence is critical, Lipsett said.

“Campus specialized sexual assault officers go out and start talking to the victim, and we get a full and complete, detailed summary of what happened,” CSUN Police Lt. Mark Benavidez said. “After that, we take the victim to the hospital, where we get biological evidence via a sexual assault nurse who’s specialized in doing that. After that we provide counseling service referrals and victim advocacy and things like that.”

“Sensitivity training from the very, very top positions all the way down to the students is important,” Stoicof said. “Once everybody is on board and has that understanding, we are going to be more able to help and prevent at that point.”

Moderator: Trene Todd

Anchor: Jonny Green

Reporters: Mihkel Teemant, Brionna Lewis, Jacquelyn Koenig, Ben Ladiana

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