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While it is a taboo topic on campuses, sexual assault continues to be one of the top issues plaguing academic institutions today. Countless students across campuses have been preyed on and are battling the trauma all alone.
What are the top causes of sexual assault on college campuses? What is the role of the institution in making their place safer for all students? The writer of this essay digs deep into these questions.
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Causes of Sexual Assault on College Campuses
Patty was excited about her first date with football star Ken. She’d had the longest crush on him, and it felt great that he finally noticed her. She didn’t even think twice about saying yes, even when he made a lewd comment about the outfit she was wearing that day.
On the night of their date, Ken invited Patty over to a frat party to meet some of his friends. Excited to be seen with him, Patty quickly agreed. They went to the venue where Patty got to know the people in Ken’s circle. There was a lot of laughter over shared alcohol and pizza. All was going well until a couple of hours later when Ken invited Patty to a spare bedroom.
Thinking she was about to enjoy a romantic evening with Ken, Patty went hand-in-hand with him upstairs. To her surprise, waiting for them there were some of Ken’s male friends. Patty became a victim of date rape that night. Sandra, who was at the same party, overheard Ken and his friends making plans and saw Patty go upstairs, but she chose to stay quiet. She didn’t want anyone coming after her for reporting what she saw.
The story I narrated above is one of many chilling experiences of sexual assault on a college campus. Sadly, there are people who have suffered worse fates than Patty. All around America, numerous college students from many schools are victims of unwanted sexual contact, rape culture, sexual abuse, and physical violence. Most college women feel unsafe walking back to their dorms by themselves or going to parties unaccompanied, for fear that they may be unwittingly prayed on. A lot of these cases are also dismissed for lack of a witness to vouch for the story, which is a growing problem everywhere.
What are the main causes of this rising issue on campuses?
The use of alcohol and drugs
Unfortunately, a lot of assaults on college campuses happen when people are under the influence. As a result, victims of sexual assault tend not to clearly remember the events that transpired. Studies have shown that a certain portion of first-year college women experienced being raped while incapacitated. Many of them ended up in that situation out of peer pressure. As a result, they wake up the next day not quite remembering the assault, even when their bodies are keeping score. They feel the physical effects of the abuse, but struggle to recall the exact event that transpired. Unfortunately, assault occurs most commonly during first-time drug use. Most predators even plan this intentionally.
Keeping personal experience under wraps
A very low number of women – one in five women – report their experience. Most of them go on with their college lives, unaware of how the trauma can affect them when left undealt with. Many of these young adults feel embarrassed that they were rape victims or fear being punished by the predator for calling them out. Some convince themselves that it was only attempted to rape, so it can’t count as an actual case.
As a result, offenders are not held responsible for their wrongdoings. This perpetuates a system of repeat sexual assaults, resulting in more sexual assault cases left unreported. Many young women will continue to experience being victims of various offenders throughout college as a result of not getting the help that they need from their university officials.
Peer pressure
This is one of the top causes of sexual assaults on campuses, especially for those entering college. Since they live with their peers and not with their parents, students are frequently exposed to the influences of their friends, which are not always healthy and wise. Freshmen, especially, having just experienced freedom from living at home, are excited to experience life independently and are willing to try anything to fit in.
They end up going to big parties where they are encouraged to drink upon an empty stomach, then meet someone of the opposite sex that they are attracted to. Because they are no longer thinking straight, they become easy to manipulate. It is at this point that they end up being sexually abused or a victim of another cruel act. Unfortunately, society today downplays this factor, as most people argue that it was their choice to get wasted or high.
The Role of Campuses in Preventing Cases of Sexual Assault
How, then, can we make our campuses safer places for students to thrive? How can we make every woman walk to her home alone at night feeling secure and in control? I believe that every staff member should come together and help prevent sexual assaults from happening.
Empower the bystander
One of the variables that we can leverage is the presence of a witness. Many of these people end up keeping things to themselves because they are afraid to become the next victims. They also convince themselves that it is not their place to get a student in trouble and that they didn’t see the actual sexual activities, so it is difficult to prove.
Only a portion is brave enough to step out. Perhaps it is high time to develop a training program for all students to recognize what a high-risk situation looks like and provide clear instructions on what they can do when they become witnesses to a sexual assault occurring. When there is someone to vouch for them, a victim may feel more willing to talk.
Provide quick-response tools for women
Colleges should develop apps or technologies that enable someone to ask for immediate assistance when they find themselves in a high-risk situation. It should be something as simple as pressing a button or enabling tracking on their devices. When a school provides the resources that they need to get help, students may feel more confident on the campus.
Generate awareness on sexual assaults on college
One of the many factors that keep women from pressing charges or calling out their perpetrators is that they don’t really know what constitutes assault or abuse. They don’t know that explicit consent is one of the key factors that determine the category of sexual assault in any criminal justice system. They don’t know that there are other forms of sexual harassment other than being raped.
It is this lack of knowledge that makes them believe that they are not really victims and that everything they are feeling is invalid. Universities should be more intentional in mounting awareness events on campus on the reality of assault. Students should be made to realize how deeply this kind of trauma can scar them if they are left unchecked.
Conclusion
Sexually assaulted individuals will continue to experience the repercussions of their traumatic experiences on college campuses unless they get help. A lot of predators get away with sexual violence because they know that no one will tell on them. It is important that we change the narrative on this issue. We need to stop making this an open secret and call it out for what it is: a tramping of human rights and the dignity of the woman. Any student attending college deserves to feel safe and heard.
I dream of a day when there would be no more cases of campus sexual assault everywhere, and if there are, that offenders are promptly punished and those subjected to this act of harm would be given the proper avenue to seek healing. I pray for a time when we would be willing to stand up for those who cannot speak for themselves. I hope that fear will no longer be an obstacle in doing so, that we would be quick to demand accountability for those who have caused harm to other people. Every woman deserves our protection and empathy.