The #MeToo Campaign

Recently, on social media platforms, women and men have stood in solidarity with one another over this empowering--and unfortunate issue. The status goes,"If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote, 'Me too' as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem." As I was scrolling through my own social media feed, I was alarmed by the number of strong women who were impacted by horrible circumstances. When an issue as enormous as this is silently happening, where every 98 seconds, one American is sexually assaulted, awareness is NOT enough and we must all take a stand together.

http://www.vawlearningnetwork.ca/learning-network-resources/learning-network-infographics
Understanding and preventing rape culture is essential in this fight against sexual assault. 

There are approximately 371,500 victims of rape and sexual assault every year in America, and unfortunately, most of them are younger women, and transgender students.^{1, 2} Moreover, the long term effects on victims include PTSD, suicidal thoughts, and drug use.³ The fact that so many women and men have come forth in solidarity with this campaign speaks in volumes about our inability to address it thus far. 
While prevention remains the primary method of combating these staggering numbers, it will take generational change to learn the immense value of consent and respecting one another. Women should not be forced to dress certain ways, or constantly look over their shoulder during a late night walk, or be wary when not with a group of people. There should be legitimate repercussions for assailants' actions, which is not seen now, when only 6 out of 1,000 predators ends up in jail. 
We shouldn't be silenced for something that happened outside our control, and voicing our support for one another is where we should start. By taking a stand today, we can prevent the same from happening tomorrow. 

1. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics, National Crime Victimization Survey, 2010-2014 (2015).
2. David Cantor, Bonnie Fisher, Susan Chibnall, Reanna Townsend, et. al. Association of American Universities (AAU), Report on the AAU Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Sexual Misconduct (September 21, 2015). ("Victim services agency” is defined in this study as a “public or privately funded organization that provides victims with support and services to aid their recovery, offer protection, guide them through the criminal justice process, and assist with obtaining restitution.” RAINN presents this data for educational purposes only, and strongly recommends using the citations to review any and all sources for more information and detail.)
3. DG Kilpatrick, CN Edumuds, AK Seymour. Rape in America: A Report to the Nation. Arlington, VA: National Victim Center and Medical University of South Carolina (1992).

Meghana Pisupati

IHS 2018