Florida State University is home to the Seminoles, the number one football team in the country, and a shocking amount of sexual assault.
Sexual assault is in fact so relevant to the Florida State campus that upon admission, all prospective ‘noles are required to “Nole their Role.” The “Nole Your Role” quiz is a series of questions on what constitutes sexual assault, how to avoid sexual assault, and how to avoid being a sexual assaulter, amongst other topics of safety.
Photo credit: http://fsumeasureup.com/about-the-campaign/statistics/consent-theme/
But FSU doesn’t stop at “Nole Your Role”—every single school bus (sans the occasional smaller white bus) sports a poster proudly proclaiming that “FSU Men Measure Up.” The FSU Men Measure Up website teaches men that “Measuring Up” is all about making the right choices; it teaches about bystander behavior, about making the right choices, and provides workshops for FSU men.
According to the Measure Up website, a great majority of men answered that they do frequently get consent before intimacy, that they frequently stopped the first time a date said “no” to sexual activity, and that they frequently stopped sexual activity when sexually aroused.
Foremost, it is highly admirable that FSU does not give its female students the same advice society does of “don’t get raped,” but instead teaches its male students to simply not rape. Yet, despite Florida State’s many constructs and committees set in place to help victims of sexual assault in rape, it still happens in relatively large numbers—and half of those cases, if not more, go unreported.
In 2008, a victim advocate program at Florida State University gathered statistics on 57 sexual offenses, both on and off campus. Yet, of those 57 cases, only a fraction appeared on the school’s official crime statistics.
Which brings us to a more global issue—reporting rape and sexual assault, and helping victims and survivors. Every hour, twenty-eight college-aged women will be raped. Of those twenty-eight, only sixteen will share their story, and twelve will remain silent.
Which woman is better off?—the one who reports the incident, or the one who stays silent?
The first stall door on the first floor women’s bathroom in Bellamy caries a conversation.
“How do I get over being raped?”
At least half a dozen other girls to use the stall wrote back, perhaps more, as it seems some of the writing is erased.
“Make his life hell,” writes one.
“I was raped as well,” writes another. “But I’ve come to terms that it was HIS fault, not mine. Just know you’re not alone sweet [heart].”
“…but just know you will get through this. As humans we have an incredible gift of spirit. God and time will heal your wounds. This doesn’t change your worth.”
Several of the anonymous girls advised the original writer to file a report with FSU PD or go to the victim advocate center, to which she responded, “The woman was nice but just told me not to think about it. How can I not when I see him?”
Rape culture is very real. Though FSU is working hard to shape their male students’ characters and attitudes toward sexual assault, and educating its student body on what exactly constitutes as sexual assault (99% of rapes committed are committed by men, and of those men 84% will deny that their actions constitute as rape), there is clearly more work to be done.
Stigma toward victims of sexual assault needs to be eradicated, slut shaming needs to end, and society as a whole needs to stop defending the attacker. “Don’t think about it” is light years away from being appropriate advice for a victim of sexual assault.
So, to the girl in the stall—you are strong, you are more than a victim, and you fight until your attacker is brought to justice.