On Thursday, the brothers of Delta Tau Delta and the sisters of Sigma Delta Tau held a free screening of The Hunting Ground, a documentary about sexual assault on college campuses. Although the movie has been a subject of The Stute before, something was new this time around: the screening was followed by a discussion with Sofia Karasek, an anti-sexual violence activist. She was also unfortunately a subject in the movie, having been assaulted by an upperclassman during her freshman year at UC Berkeley — a man who got off scot-free and now goes to Harvard. Karasek was also featured this past weekend during Lady Gaga’s performance of “Till It Happens To You” during the Oscars, a performance that was widely hailed as an incredibly powerful one for sexual assault victims and allies. Some highlights from the question and answer session include the following:
Karasek believed that the key to preventing the wrong mindsets from forming early on in regards to rape culture requires affirmative consent education as early as middle school. She praised the initiatives started by programs like “Yes Means Yes” as being a step in the right direction. She was also asked about her performance with Lady Gaga at the Oscars and the impact she felt it had. Karasek said that she was happy that the performance moved so many people, but more importantly, gave people the courage to admit to their friends and family that they had been sexually assaulted, with Lady Gaga herself being one of them. She also said that she hoped the performance would help start discussions in Hollywood about the often unhealthy way sex is portrayed onscreen.
Rape, she also revealed, is most often perpetrated by college athletes. The numbers vary from institution to institution, but sexual assault committed by athletes ranges between one-fourth and one-fifth of all rapes. At Harvard, that number is projected to be nearly one-third of all campus rapes. Unfortunately, the discrepancies from campus to campus make it too difficult to quantify.
That’s not to simply vilify male athletes however; Karasek also said that one-sixth of all men assaulted will be assaulted under age 18, usually when they are kids and usually by a relative they know.
One-of-thirty-three men will be raped while in college, and one-third LGBTQ students are sexually assaulted in college. Most men will be assaulted by other men, and men are far more likely to be assaulted as a man than to be the assaulter. However, toxic masculinity and expectations for men to be “tough” often prevents male victims from speaking out, especially if the perpetrator is a female.
Karasek had three phrases that she uses when addressing someone who has confessed to being raped: “I believe you”; “It’s not your fault”; and “You’re not alone.” The point of those three phrases, she explains, is to help validate the victim’s emotions and let them feel that they are being cared for.
To learn more about the The Hunting Ground to learn more about the sexual assault epidemic and what is being done. If you or someone you know has any sexual assault concerns, contact the Title IX Coordinator, Kristie Damell on the 10th floor of the Howe Center or at kdamell@stevens.edu.
