According to Kathleen Hirsch, the author of “Fraternities of Fear: Gang Rape, Male Bonding, and the Silencing of Women” 1 in every 4 women attending college will be the victim of sexual assault at some point during her academic career. Or in another study reported in the “The sexual Victimization of College Women” there are 35.3 incidents of sexual assault in a group of 1,000 women in a time span of 6.91 months (Statistics). Obviously sexual assault is a huge problem that should be taken very seriously. Some colleges have wonderful programs put in place that provides great services to help those students who have been have been sexually assaulted and programs that help education and prevent sexual assault.
Laws have been created to help with sexual assault victims for example, Title IX however laws like these are not good enough to keep students protected; schools need additional policies put in place to help keep their students safe. In 1972 Title IX was passed which was a law that “requires gender equity for boys and girls in every educational program that receives federal funding” (History). The law has ten areas in which it protects students and their access to higher education, career education, education for pregnant and parenting students, employment, learning environment, math and science, sexual harassment, standardized testing and technology (History). When dealing with sexual harassment Title IX requires that schools immediately take action to eliminate sexual assault threats as soon as an incident is reported (studentaffaris). The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, or for short Clery Act is another law that is put in place to protect sexually assaulted victims. ...
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"Statistics about Sexual Assault and College Campuses." Statistics about Sexual Assault. Sarah Lawrence College, n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2013. .
"Title IX." Student Affairs. Stanford University, n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2013. .
Vladutiu, Catherine J., Sandra L. Martin, and Rebecca J. Macy. "College- or University- Based Sexual Assault Prevention Programs: A Review of Program Outcomes, Characteristics, and Recommendations." Trauma, Violence, & Abuse. SAGE, n.d. Web. 5 Nov. 2013. .
Voss, Kate. "23 Years after the Clery Act, Are Schools Any Safer?" The College Fix RSS. N.p., 22 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Nov. 2013. .
The trial of 19 year old Owen Laurie has brought into light the alarming rate in which Sexual assault is rising. The issue that rages on in Colleges is said to be making its way to high schools and primary school. In a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Division of Violence Prevention, 19% of Undergraduate women experienced
With one in five college students experiencing sexual assault during their college career who wouldn’t be afraid? This remains especially true for young women between the ages of 18-24 (“The Realities of Sexual Assault”). While a woman’s freshman and sophomore year of college are when she is at a most risk for assault, it can happen at any time. According to Robin Gray in the article on sexual assault statistics, “between 20% and 25% of women will experience a completed and/or attempted rape during their college career,” (Gray). At Northwest Missouri State University for the 2016-2017 academic year there are 5,618 undergraduate students enrolled. With the ratio of male to female students being 44% to 56%, there are about 3,147 female students. In terms of the statistics estimated by Gray, 630-787 of the female student population at Northwest Missouri State will experience rape during their college career (“Northwest Missouri State University”). This is a disturbingly large figure. Women are not the only ones susceptible to these acts, but men are too. It is said about “10%” of all sexual assault cases involve male victims (“The Realities of Sexual Assault”). While this number is slightly lower for men it is often believed that male victims of sexual assault do not often report their crime due to the social stigma surrounding their assault. Men may feel
The faces flash by on the computer screen. The women on the screen are differents shapes, sizes, ages, and colors. However, there is one thing that all the women have in common: they have all been sexually assaulted on a college campus. More than one in five women were sexually assaulted on college campuses (Mott, Par. 1). It has been proven that programs in schools can help prevent these statistics from growing. However, more needs to be done to prevent sexual assault on educational facilities because the current programs are not fulfilling their purpose.
Look at the media and movies about college life. Most stem around getting drunk and having sex. This norm or perception about women going to college to be raped needs to be eliminated. Obviously there need to be programs, punishments, and awareness training to help eliminate the sexual assault on college campuses. However, campuses also need to get the college community involved to make sexual assault less of a norm and more of what it is; unacceptable!
In this research paper, we will evaluate how sexual assault is handled on a college campus. What system is used and how does it
Sexual assault is defined as any type of sexual contact or behavior that occurs without the explicit consent of the recipient. Falling under the definition of sexual assault are sexual activities as forced sexual intercourse, forcible sodomy, child molestation, incest, fondling, and In the United States 80% of sexual assault victims are under the age of 30. Of that 80%, 44% are under the age of 18 (RAINN, 2016). That leaves 36% of victims between the ages of 18 and 30. These percentages become even more alarming when that 80% is of about 293,000 victims of secual assualt each year (RAINN, 2016). It is estimated that 1 in every 6 women in the US has been or will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime. The risks of sexual assault increase on college campuses. Women ages 18-24 who are enrolled in college are 3 times more likely than women in general to suffer from sexual violence (RAINN, 2016). One would think that with all these women being sexually assaulted, one would hear more about it, or perhaps the police stations would constantly be busy. This is not the case. Sexual assault is one of the most unreported crimes, with 68% still being left unreported (RAINN, 2016). This could be because of every 100 rapists, only 2 will spend a day in jail. Of the 32 out of 100 that would be reported, only 7 are referred to an arrest (RAINN, 2016). Why would men or women want to report sexual assault when the system that is supposed to protect them fails so often, and why does this system continue to fail?
Have you ever been encountered in a circumstance of being raped or knew an individual that was a victim of rape? Every one-hundred and seven seconds an American is sexually assaulted (RAINN). Rape has become a continuous problem causing controversy due to the way colleges cover up or simply hide incidents of rape throughout campus. More college students are also being raped by their own acquaintances rather than random strangers. Students, parents, and politicians question the way schools protect students and how their campuses can become more effective and efficient in preventing further occurrences of rape. Over the past years there has been a series of incidents where rape has been an extreme problem on college campuses in America that have been kept quiet until something traumatic happens. The prevalence of rapes on college campuses is continuing to rise due to lack of security, surveillance and awareness.
Rape is currently on the rise on American college campuses and it is the most common committed crime among college students today. In their time in college 1 out of every 5 women and 1 out of every 71 men will experience some form of sexual harassment as reported by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center. These numbers are growing each year and have raised a lot of concern in the administrative level of higher education institutions. In an effort to try and prevent these occurrences universities have begun to implement mandatory curriculum to educate students on the subject and have even begun to hold campus wide events and create clubs to spread awareness and show support because of the repetitive nature of this crime. While it is good
To date, “between 10 to 40 percent of female students [. . .] have been raped while [. . .] up to 60 percent of males students [have] commit[ed] actions that meet the legal definition of sexual assault” (Bretz 19). This percentage demonstrates the ineffectiveness of university policies and signifies a drastic change to procedures is in order if educational institutions want to see improvement. In order to see an effective change, policies must “explicitly define key terms such as “‘consent’, ‘force’ [,]‘incapacity’ and cover [a] range of sexually violent behavior” (Gunraj 9). Furthermore, since the age of fourteen 58.7% of females “ha[ve] experienced one or more forms of victimization[. . .] 35.0% ha[ve] experienced at least one completed or attempted rape and 23.5% ha[ve] been raped” (Senn et. al. Results). First-year female students are not prepared for the perpetrators they will face on campus, and as a result, are more vulnerable to sexual violence. Universities need to develop effective policies and procedures to not only prepare women for the challenges they may face but to reduce the overall number of sexual assaults and make school a safer environment for
There is a difference in campus sexual assaults from sexual assaults that are committed outside of the college campus. One of the main differences for victims who are involved in an on campus sexual assault is that they have access to two adjudicatory systems: the academic institution and criminal justice system. However, victims of outside sexual assaults can only seek compensation through the legal system such as a criminal complaint and/or civil action. (DeMatteo, August 2015) One may argue that when having access to both adjudicatory systems deliberates a great benefit to the victims who were involved in an on campus sexual assault. In a criminal trial for sexual assault, the prosecution must prove every element beyond a reasonable doubt, which is the highest burden of proof in the U.S. justice system. (DeMatteo, August 2015) By contrast, when dealing with administrative contexts showing proof is very lower in sexual assaults. Victims of sexual assaults have multiple benefits when their cases are controlled administratively rather than it being controlled by the criminal justice system. A major benefit is that a lower burden of proof in an administrative context makes it very easy for a victim to establish that a sexual assault took place. An additional benefit is that an administrative resolution may authorize the victim to obtain suitable accommodations and services from the academic institution, as well as counseling and academic support. Although victims of campus sexual assaults collect some benefits when such incidents are conducted by the academic institution, the suspected perpetrators of campus sexual assaults frequently receive less routine due process protection when sexual assault allegations are processed in administrative contexts. (DeMatteo, August 2015) While 304 of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 provides
A survey from the Association of American Universities of 150,000 students found that more than one in four women experience sexual assault during their four years in college. Over the four year college period, 27.2% of female students are victims of unwanted sexual contact that ranges from touching to rape (6). Sexual assault is far too common and it is an epidemic that faces many students in college. Many students suffer from the consequences of sexual assault, which is a result of many social and cultural deficiencies, but it can be fixed through a multifaceted approach. The problem of sexual assault can be fixed through the education of the community, a positive and helpful school environment, and classes focused on prevention.
According to a statement addressing the sexual victimization of college women The Crime and Victimization in America states that, “ One out of four women will be sexually assaulted on a college campus.” This disturbing fact has not minimized throughout the years, instead it is continuing to worsen throughout college campuses. Sexual assault is not an act to be taken lightly. Society must stop pinpointing the individuals who commit these crimes one by one, but rather look at the problem as a whole and begin to understand the main cause of sexual assault and possible methods to reduce these acts of sexual coercion.
Sexual assault is something very serious and dangerous and can mess a person’s life up both physically and mentally. Females are feeling unsafe on the grounds of places were they are going to get an education to make a dream come true. Why should they feel unsafe and why should they have to worry about being a target. Also many people need to realize how big of an issue this is and it shouldn’t be brushed under the
"Sexual Assault and College Campuses - Statistics." Statistics about Sexual Assault. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. .
The collection of violent crime data in the UCR includes the numbers of murders and manslaughters, rapes, robberies, aggravated assaults, property crimes, burglaries, larcenies and motor vehicle thefts, and arsons (Table 9). The most common crime that is rarely reported throughout college campuses is rape. Based on the UCR, the rape counts from 2005 through 2012 throughout campuses in New York State ar...