Have you ever heard of Lauren Bernstein? You will Tuesday. She’s the person to know if you’ve been a victim of sexual violence. She came to Emory last year and now she’s a coordinator for the Respect Program, advisor for Alliance for Sexual Assault Prevention (ASAP) and Sexual Assault Peer Advocates (SAPA), and on the Center for Women Advisory Board. She’s bringing awareness to Emory about sexual violence on campus, helping victims, and trying to prevent any further instances. With her help and the programs we have on campus, sexual violence is being brought to the forefront of Emory’s attention.

Before this year, even before this class, I hadn’t even heard of any reports of sexual violence on campus. But as on any campus, there is sexual violence prevalent. In the Emory Wheel, Ariana Skibell writes “Seven rapes reported since August… Three took place in Clairmont Hall, two in fraternity houses on Eagle Row and one in Harris Hall…” When this is mentioned around campus, the attitudes surrounding it are surprisingly negative. I’ve heard “Oh, she probably got too drunk… she was asking for it.” Never, is this the case. Alcohol is not an excuse for rape. “Rape does not happen just because one individual chooses to rape another. Rape happens because there are attitudes and norms that allow it to happen (Guy 10). Society has accepted what is known as “rape culture” – rape culture condones physical and emotional terrorism against women as the norm (Guy 10). It is sad to realize that our culture has accepted rape culture. Women are afraid to report rapes, people are timid to acknowledge that rape happens, rapists are condoned for their actions.

“Approximately 50-70% of sexual assaults involve alcohol” (Guy 19). Inebriated people, especially college students more likely to binge drink, lose their inhibitions. People do things they would normally never do – some can get aggressive while others some can become submissive and act as an easy target. When I attended Take Back the Night last Monday, Emory students told their personal stories of sexual violence attacks against them, many involving alcohol. Many females who reported they had been raped said they never had said no and that they were too drunk to do anything about it.  “In order to change individual campus norms, it is necessary to understand the context and reasons (the how, when, and why) that students use alcohol and the connection to sexual violence” (Guy 19).

Emory’s 8th annual Take Back the Night took place Monday November 12th. It was a supportive collaboration of ASAP, SAPA, the Respect Program, and Emory students that raised awareness of sexual violence on campus by reporting statistics, reading about sexual violence, and telling anonymous and personal stories submitted by Emory students. These are the kind of events that should set off alarms in every students head. Sexual violence happens, and it can happen to anyone. No one is immune. As people told their stories of what had happened to them, I found myself even tearing up. The emotional aftereffects of sexual violence is overwhelming, omnipresent, hard to acknowledge, difficult to overcome, painful, and more. Events like Take Back the Night engage campus communities across the globe. They try to transform the norms of rape culture and prevent further sexual violence. What we can do is bring awareness amongst more members of the Emory community. Let’s prevent sexual violence.

Seven Rapes Reported Since Aug.

Guy, Lydia; Lee, David; Perry, Brad. “Shifting the Paradigm: Primary Prevention of Sexual Violence.” American College Health Association. August 2008.