Who could forget about Brock Turner? The 19-year-old Stanford University swimmer. Am I missing anything? Oh, yeah, rapist.
Unfortunately we are all to quick to forget about obscenities like this. Injustice occurs, and we’re in an uproar, but then time passes and nothing changes. Sexual assault is a serious and yet over-looked issue on college campuses. 20-25% of women are sexually assaulted during their college career. However, even though a full quarter of women are effected and in danger, very little is being done to prevent it. Instead of discussing the issue, most colleges attempt to conceal it. Adelphi University wanted to make sure that didn’t happen this time.
Now You See Me, Now You Hear Me was an event purposed to raise awareness of sexual assault on college campuses.
Maggie Lally, event coordinator
Isuri Wijesundara, event coordinator
The first portion, Now You See Me, featured students and faculty with stage affect makeup to represent women who have been victims of sexual abuse. Their bruises and injuries were placed and darkened to match the severity of people who have suffered this kind of abuse. The daunting sight was something most people would cringe at and turn away from, but it’s important to look and see the gravity of sexual assault. They answered questions surrounding the issue and the impact it leaves on victims.
The second portion, Now You Hear Me, occurred in front of a full house in the Olmsted Theatre and via live stream to over 500 viewers. There 99 different people with different voices, young and old, male and female, from all majors, read the entirety of the Stanford victim’s letter and Joe Biden’s response letter. It was powerful and encouraging to see so many people on our campus supporting this young woman and standing up against sexual assault, whether they were one of the voices reading the letter, helping run the event, or in the audience listening to the message that the Stanford rape victim wanted the world to hear.
Lastly all of the facilities on campus that exist to help students with cases of sexual assault stepped onto the stage and made it known that students can always reach out to them.
While it is unlikely that sexual assault in college will disappear in one day, it’s reassuring to know we are on a campus who allowed this event to occur and is taking a step forward towards putting a stop to it. Between this event and future events to come including Take Back the Night, I can say that I am in a community that cares about my well-being as a woman. On top of that, an important message that was preached was that it’s not just on women to protect themselves, but on men to stop sexually assaulting. If universities continue to preach this important point, changes will be made. The impact of this incredible event and those to come will have been felt.