Title IX: Sexual assault meeting

In a report by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), in 2000, revealed “90% of campus sexual assaults are committed by perpetrators that the victim knows.” The report also states,“33.7% completed rapes occur on campus and 45.1% of attempted rapes also occur on campus.”

It was a sunny mid-afternoon, at 4PM, when a small group of students gathered around the Santa Monica College (SMC) clock tower to discuss sexual assault awareness.“The purpose of this meeting is to discuss and educate those who are unfamiliar with sexual assault,” said Isabel Castillo, the host of the meeting. Those who attended the event were handed a pamphlet titled What is Sexual Assault?, and were given a quick survey which included questions such as gender, sexual orientation, and answer yes or no to the following questions, which scenarios do you consider sexual consent? “Sexual assault can be physical and verbal hostility. This applies to not only women, but men as well,” said Castillo.

College students around the United States, are protected under ordnance Title IX. Title IX is a landmark federal civil rights law, passed in 1972, which prohibits sexual discrimination in education. This legislation also helps to protect victims of sexual harassment and violence.

In May 2014, the U.S. Department of Education, released a report of the top 43 Universities and Ivy League Schools who are under investigation concerning Title IX violations. These institutions include Harvard, Princeton, Penn State, University of California – Berkeley, University of Southern California, Florida State University, and many more. Sexual misconduct continues to be an issue across the country as more and more reports reach the public sphere. According to the US Department of Education data report, forcible sex offenses practically doubled from 3,264 in 2009 to 6,016 in 2014.

In a report by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ), in 2000, revealed “90% of campus sexual assaults are committed by perpetrators that the victim knows.” The report also states,“33.7% completed rapes occur on campus and 45.1 % of attempted rapes also occur on campus.” The NIJ deeply reveals that 6.2% of rapes go unreported because of fear of being treated hostilely by other parts of the justice system.

A young man during the meeting proposed that students should create sexual consent cards. His idea is to have sexual partners contractually sign a card to ordain sexual intercourse, in hopes to prevent non-sexual consent. “That’s not the point,” said Ian Erskine, “sexual consent is about having respect, and moral principles for your partner. That is not the point as to why were having this discussion.” Other students explained their reason why this young man’s idea would not work. At one point he was asked by Castillo, “What happens if the two sign and the girl changes her mind?” He asked, “Why would the girl change her mind?” Castillo went on to explain that some women may place themselves in sexual situations, thinking at first that it is a good idea, but then realize that maybe it was not a good decision after all. Some people also mentioned that the person may start engaging in sexual activities that can be uncomfortable for their partner.

“I think it’s important to have these discussions because it helps people to be informed,” said Naazley Boozari. One member of the group shared her experience about growing up in Missouri, stating she had little to no sexual education from her school. Another young man, from Texas, said that he was taught to abstain. Others chimed in to say that they were taught to abstain as well. Others discussed how they only saw a video about natural birth. Towards the end of the meeting everyone was asked what they had learned from this discussion and what will they do with there new found information. Nearly everyone said that they will help by spreading the word.