Rebels Against Sexual Assault plans to host several events throughout the month of April for Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
In 2009, President Obama officially declared April Sexual Assault Awareness Month. His administration has taken steps such as creating an “It’s on Us” week and the White House Task Force to continue the fight against sexual assault on college campuses.
RASA kicked off their calendar of events April 1, in Bryant Hall, where Chancellor Jeffrey Vitter and law professor Michèle Alexandre spoke.
Vitter spoke about creating a culture where sexual assault is not tolerated and people are treated with respect in accordance with the UM Creed.
Alexandre closed the event with a talk on the history of the objectification of the human body. She urged students to create discussions with peers about consent and respect for others, especially those in non-conforming gender roles.
According to RASA President Sydney Green, conversations surrounding ideas such as consent, respect and what constitutes as sexual assault are all important ways for peers to help survivors or intervene in the future.
“I think it’s really important that we all start conversations with our friends because we can hold events like this all we want,” Green said. “We can have professors speak to students about how wrong it is not to ask for consent, but what really makes change is when students like us get together, have conversations and pressure each other to do what’s right.”
Lindsey Bartlett Mosvick, violence prevention coordinator, helped organize events for Sexual Assault Awareness Month last spring but said the student leaders in RASA took the reigns in putting together the events this year.
RASA will host “Take Back the Night” at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Lyceum Circle. The event will honor survivors of sexual assault. The event will also offer an opportunity for survivors to share their experiences with a candle light vigil.
(Courtesy Rebels Against Sexual Assault)
RASA will also offer opportunities throughout the first half of the month for students to make their own pieces of T-shirt art for the Clothesline Project.
The UM Student Disabilities Services and Student Veterans Association are hosting a Healing Art Reception and Panel from 5-8 p.m. April 14 at the Powerhouse. The event is an opportunity for the community to view art pieces illustrating the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder on victims of sexual assault.
On April 19, RASA will host a screening of “The Hunting Ground,” an award winning documentary film about campus sexual assault with a student panel.
The month will conclude with a performance of the popular “Vagina Monologues,” made iconic by Eve Ensler in the 1990s. The performances will serve as a fundraiser for Family Crisis Services of Northwest Mississippi.
RASA is hoping to use this month to educate UM students on the importance of sexual assault awareness.
“I think that our main goal is in accordance with the month itself,” Green said. “We’re raising awareness about sexual assault. We want to raise awareness about the resources that the University offers for survivors of sexual assault.”
