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By Megan McKendry • 12 years ago

On Strauss-Kahn and “Scandals”

This post was written by SAFER’s awesome blogger, Colleen, and originally posted at Change Happens.

This is not going to be an exhaustive post on the Dominique Strauss-Kahn case. There are a number of things to say about the charges and the reactions to them from various national and international quarters—not to mention the fact that the case has sparked some awareness about the sexual assault risks faced by hotel staff as a class. There are some good pieces out there on these aspects of the case and more, but here I want to talk about something that may seem minor—but really isn’t.

Unless you’ve been avoiding all forms of news media for the past month, you know that the Strauss Kahn case broke a mere two days before reports of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s marital infidelity surfaced in the Los Angeles Times. Both have been big stories here in the U.S., and as you’ve probably noticed (again, unless you’ve been living under a rock since early May) reporters, pundits, and all manner of media commentators have often spoken of them in the same breath. Usually it’s in an offhand way, as a convenient transition between the two stories or simply a reminder that two “sex scandals” are making headlines these days. And there have been some think pieces too (see here for the New York Times’s contribution and here for that of the L.A. Times) , that link them under a “men who take advantage” framework. But these remarks, casual ...
By Megan McKendry • 12 years ago

Why Being Drunk Is Not A Feminist Issue

So, here’s a low-hanging fruit for internet feminist critique. Yesterday, Kate over at The Frisky contended that “being drunk is a feminist issue” and was promptly smacked down by Jill from Feministe. I’ve quoted a representative excerpt from Kate’s essay below:

The more I think about alcohol and its relationship to sexual assault, the more I am convinced that binge drinking is a feminist issue—one that young women in the U.S. need to think about in addition to more obvious issues like equal pay for equal work, better access to gynecological care, and the need for more women representing us in government. Extreme drinking—the kind we see on “Jersey Shore,” the kind we know goes down on college campuses all across the ...

So, here’s a low-hanging fruit for internet feminist critique. Yesterday, Kate over at The Frisky contended that “being drunk is a feminist issue” and was promptly smacked down by Jill from Feministe. I’ve quoted a representative excerpt ...
By Megan McKendry • 12 years ago

Spotlighting Student Activism: CSU Students Implement Fee to Address Interpersonal Violence

The following post was written by Jennifer Babos, the Vice President of the student government at Colorado State University (CSU). Jennifer and her colleagues created funds for improved survivor services and preventive sexual assault programming at CSU by advancing evidence-based recommendations and drumming up support from student constituents. This article details her journey and acts as an excellent and inspiring case study for student organizers across North America who are working toward eliminating sexual violence on their campuses.

In Fort Collins, CO, the students of Colorado State University have voted to implement a brand new student fee to address interpersonal violence on campus. The fee is $4.00 a student/per semester, equaling around $189,600 a year, and it will be administered by ...

The following post was written by Jennifer Babos, the Vice President of the student government at Colorado State University (CSU). Jennifer and her colleagues created funds for improved survivor services and preventive sexual assault programming at CSU ...
By Megan McKendry • 12 years ago

Today Show Only Covers Stories with Black Rapists

This piece was originally posted at Change Happens by Twe, SAFER’s Web Coordinator.

Apparently the producers at the Today Show did not read my last post about the lack of diversity in campus rape stories.

They highlighted the stories of two women survivors – one at Indiana University and the other at Wake Forest University. They had this weird thing where they felt that during an 8 minute clip they had to keep showing pictures of these (Big Bad Black)  rapists OVER AND OVER during their narratives. It is so sad that there is so much focus on the images of the perpetrators when I still think it should be about the ramifications of violence on the survivors. ...

This piece was originally posted at Change Happens by Twe, SAFER’s Web Coordinator.

Apparently the producers at the Today Show did not read my last post about the lack of diversity in campus rape ...
By Megan McKendry • 13 years ago

Critic’s Pick: Oversight

This post was written by SAFER’s awesome intern Avanti and originally published at Change Happens.

Now that we’ve explored several aspects of sexual assault policies, it’s time to examine how policies are monitored and revised. Who is in charge of enforcing the policy? Is there a review process to fix problems? How can students or other members of the community raise concerns about the policy and procedures? Every school must be mindful of oversight.

Regardless of what the school’s policy looks like, it is of utmost importance that oversight is clearly articulated. It doesn’t matter how good a policy is if no one is going to follow it as written. I’ve found some good examples of well-defined oversight that might be helpful ...

This post was written by SAFER’s awesome intern Avanti and originally published at Change Happens.

Now that we’ve explored several aspects of sexual assault policies, it’s time to examine how policies are monitored and revised. Who is ...
By Megan McKendry • 13 years ago

Critic’s Pick: Reporting Options and Instructions

This post was written by SAFER’s awesome intern Avanti and originally published at Change Happens.

It’s time to examine a new aspect of sexual assault policies: reporting options and instructions.

Reporting a sexual assault is often overwhelming, confusing, intimidating, nerve-racking and a whole host of other things. There are plenty of barriers, both physical and emotional, that a survivor may face when considering reporting. Unfortunately, college campuses frequently contribute to the confusion by not providing clear reporting options and instructions. It is important that schools explicitly lay out all the options a student has (whatever those options may be) while empowering students to make their own choices about how to proceed after an assault.

First, it’s important to establish some basic ideas ...

This post was written by SAFER’s awesome intern Avanti and originally published at Change Happens.

It’s time to examine a new aspect of sexual assault policies: reporting options and instructions.

Reporting a sexual assault is often overwhelming, ...