Two thirds of US college students have been harassed on campus

That’s according to a survey of college students and school administrators commissioned by  the anti-street harassment group Hollaback! Here are some more facts from the study… 

• 46% of students said harassment caused disappointment with college experience
• 20% said harassment caused inability to concentrate in class
• 23% said harassment prevented attendance in class / social activities
• 55% of college administrators said that current systems to report and address harassment are not sufficient
• only 17% of students said that they reported harassment to a person of authority

Considering that harassment is a daily fact of moving through public space for many women, trans, and gender non-conforming folks, this isn’t exactly surprising. Campuses, after all, are always embedded in larger communities–to a greater or lesser extent.

But as Alexandra argued when she wrote about the radical potential of school sexual misconduct boards, since colleges have obligations–legal and just, ya know, mission-wise–to foster a safe and productive learning environment, they are promising sites for creating change. Though they’re clearing falling down on the job when it comes to addressing the whole range of gender-based violence, as communities unto themselves, colleges could and should be harassment-free zones.

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Maya Dusenbery was lucky enough to never experience harassment on her college campus. Unless you count those aggressive geese.