Every 73 seconds, someone is sexually assaulted. Only five out of every 1,000 perpetrators will end up in prison. Sexual and gender-based violence is extremely pertinent on college campuses. Women in college ages 18-24 are at an increased risk of sexual violence compared to those not in college. More specifically, over 80% of women of color have experienced sexual abuse.
April marks the 20th anniversary of sexual assault awareness month (SAAM). SAAM was created to raise awareness and develop preventative resources about sexual assault, harassment and abuse. SAAM is also used as a time to share survivors’ stories and support victims of sexual violence.
Due to the increase in cases of sexual and gender-based violence on college campuses, and DU specifically, a group of students decided to raise awareness on this important issue that often goes overlooked. The wecanDUbetter Instagram page was created on Jan. 12, 2020. The page was started to share survivors’ stories in a safe space that is entirely anonymous.
The account was almost immediately noticed by students. The administration responded in March of 2020 by creating an action plan to unite the campus against sexual and gender-based violence. The plan is detailed and covers topics of prevention, education, training, policy review, personnel and campus safety.
“DU has done an amazing job responding to our requests, but this is an ongoing working relationship that will take years of work, outside help from experts and work specifically with groups that are more likely to become perpetrators,” said a spokesperson for wecanDUbetter.
In September, DU personnel added more lighting on campus. The university has joined the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators Culture of Respect Collective, which facilitates universities in their efforts to address sexual violence by providing training, programming and education to university leaders.
Campus safety and EOIX members have received trauma-informed training, and programming centered around harassment, discrimination and bias was required for all faculty, staff and student employees.
During this past orientation, students participated in workshops on college life, healthy relationships, substance education and Red Zone Awareness, which teaches students how to prevent acts of sexual violence. This is a crucial part in DU’s training, as men attending DU are the most likely to commit an act of sexual violence. Young adults, ages 18-34, are at the highest risk of facing sexual assault. One out of six women are victims of completed or attempted sexual assault.
“To be completely honest, the student body is only interested in the glamorous aspects of combating gender violence,” said the spokesperson. “It is a part of the conversation on campus, but when it comes to involvement, our numbers are incredibly low.”
Members of wecanDUbetter want to ensure that students are taking the time to get educated on sexual and gender-based violence and actively work against it. The Do Better Campaign, an extension of wecanDUbetter, shares survivor stories from around the country.
“Do Better has many informative events about gender violence and supportive events for survivors that are excellent opportunities for activism and support. It is necessary that students continue to be honest with themselves and their friends about what rhetoric and behavior towards women and survivors is acceptable,” said the spokesperson.
One year later, is DU living up to its promises? This is an important question that survivors, DU students and faculty are wondering.
“In general, DU listens to the requests of the student body, but when it comes to individual cases, DU’s responses can be lukewarm,” said the spokesperson. “DU, like most universities, does not tend to prioritize survivors over the most lucrative groups on campus.”
As of April 5, DU has joined Culture of Respect. It is a national higher education initiative that provides institutions with tools and resources to identify and address issues related to gender violence and sexual assault.
EOIX has updated its discrimination and harassment policy and procedures. It has a guide that talks about how to get informed, assist and support victims and report incidents of sexual and gender-based violence.
New for DU this month is the Healthy Masculinity Working Group, which will explore topics related to combating toxic masculinity. They will create events that help students learn more about what healthy masculinity means and invite experts in the field to speak on campus.
“It is not just up to the administration to solve this problem. In order to solve gender violence on campus, the culture needs to change. Be educated, be aware, and be involved if you want to see the problem change,” the spokesperson said.
SAAM is a great way for students to get involved. There are resources available on RAINN, DU’s website, wecanDUbetter’s Instagram and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center. We are all in the fight to put an end to sexual and gender-based violence.
