Sexual assault in the United States is an epidemic on the rise with a long history. The first study to be published on campus sexual assault was in 1957 when sociologist and then professor, Eugene Kanin published his article Male Sex Aggression on a University Campus (Kamenetz, 2014). A survey conducted by psychology professor Mary R. Koss in 1985, studied over 6100 college students and determined that one in four female college students had been raped (Zimmerman, 2016). Sexual assault on campus is on the rise. The number of sexual assault cases on campus reported in 2016 were 6,016 a significant increase from the 3264 cases that were reported in 2009. The national statistic finds that “1 in 5 women will be sexually assaulted during their time in college” (Nunez, 2016).
However, statistics on sexual assault vary. It is currently difficult to determine if cases of sexual assault on campus have increased as a product of increased incidents or if awareness has led to more reporting of cases (Nunez, 2016). Unfortunately, there is a large variability when it comes to the estimated number of victims in college campuses in the united states. According to the National Institute of Justice, Research has been heavily focused on “white, heterosexual, female students attending four- year colleges” (Fedina et al. 2016). This limitation in participants surveyed excludes high-at risk populations of students such as lesbian and bisexual students, ethnic minorities, transgender women and women with disabilities.
According to RAINN, the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, women between the ages of 18 and 24 are particularly at higher risk of sexual violence. In general, college aged adults, regardless of gender, are more at risk for sexual abuse. According to staggering statistics “11.2% of all students experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation” (RAINN, 2016). This number can be further broken down as 23.1% of undergraduate female students and 5.4% of male undergraduate students (RAINN, 2016).
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The Campus Assault Study conducted in 2007 concluded that most of sexual assault cases on campus occurred while the women were incapacitated in which alcohol was the primary substance used. Other distressing results concluded that both first and second year college students were at greater risk than their third and fourth year counterparts and that victims were assaulted by someone they knew or considered a friend which they trusted.
There is also an increase of risk during the first few months of students first and second semester in college (Krebs et al. 2008). An alarming 8.8% percent of female graduate students also reported sexual assault, a number that varies overwhelmingly from 2.2 % of male students (RAINN, 2016). Students who identify as transgender and nonconforming are at higher risk than students who don’t identify as transgender and nonconforming. According to national statistics, 21% of TGQN students have been sexually assaulted, a number that differs from 18% of non-TGQN Females (RAINN, 2016).
A survey by the American Association found that 1 in 4 of all transgender students in college are victims of sexual assault. Statistics also show that TGQN college students are also at higher risk for sexual harassment and undergraduate transgender students are at the highest risk for sexual assault with penetration (New, 2015). Research shows that sexual assault on college campuses in the united states is far more prevalent among the LGBTQ community. Differences among sexual orientations range from 19% for lesbian females and 32% for bisexual females comparing to 18% for heterosexual females (Quinlan, 2016). Reporting sexual assault among the LGBTQ also presents its own difficulties in which individuals might not feel comfortable doing so or in smaller colleges and communities where students feel isolated.
There are many reason in which sexual assault on campus can go unreported. Among these include a failure to understand the true definition of rape and not fully grasping what exactly has occurred. Alcohol is also a crucial factor and victims might write off sexual assault as a drunken incident between parties or enter a vicious cycle of self-blame. At times victims fear retaliation from their assailant, as well as running the risk that they might be accused of false rape accusations altogether. According to the Justice Department, 1 in 10 victims don’t think what has happened to them in significant enough to report and 1 in 5 fear reprisal (Hefling, 2014). Since most cases of sexual assault on campus occur by someone that the victim knows or trusts, reporting the crime could lead to isolation amongst social circles and friend groups. Today over 90% of rape cases on campus go unreported (Hefling, 2014).
The term “Rape Culture” was first introduced in the 1970’s as a way of establishing how society so easily and frequently blames the victims of sexual assault, while all together normalizing the acts of sexual violence by men (WAVAW). Today, rape culture is reinforced and normalized through misogynistic language, romanticizing of sexual violence and objectification of women, both of which are often portrayed in the media (SCSU). Day to day headlines and comments flood articles claiming that the woman provoked a man into sexual assault with provocative clothing or that it was the women’s fault for being intoxicated. Rape culture in America is instilling women with ideas on how to avoid rape rather than teaching men not commit rape. It is seen in our very own in country, in our very own laws, when 31 states allow for assailants to pursue child custody if the rape leads to a pregnancy (Maxwell, 2014).
Victim blaming is a huge part of rape culture. Society has a skewed perception on who is at fault during sexual assault. Not only does victim blaming discourage women from reporting sexual assault but it also reinforces the assailant. “By engaging in victim-blaming attitudes, society allows the abuser to perpetrate relationship abuse or sexual assault while avoiding accountability for his/her actions” (SCSU). This paradigm of thinking is widely seen on college campuses. Student athletes are often sympathized with and false accusation claims are falsely exaggerated, when in fact extensive research shows that somewhere between 2-8% of rape accusations are false (Lonsway, 2009).
The Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act, known as Title IX was introduced in 1972 to prevent discrimination by educational institutions based on sex. Since then, court rulings have established that under Title IX, institutions are required and held accountable of protecting its students from both sexual harassment and assault (RAINN). The purpose of Title IX is to accommodate victims in ensuring that they receive the support necessary and safety precautions needed to prevent further acts of violence or harassment from occurring to the student.
Title IX also works to prevent retaliation as well as prohibiting mediation in hearings (RAINN). Another federal law that compliments Title IX is the Clery Act that serves as a bill of rights for survivors of sexual assault on campus. Educational institutions are required by law to inform students of the resources available to them. This includes counseling services, to help students cope with traumatic event as well as informing them of legal routes to pursue such as their options to report to their case to either law enforcement or the educational institution or both (RAINN).
Even with these laws in place only 7 of every 1000 rape cases on campus will lead to a felony conviction (RAINN). Unfortunately, there is a lack of consequence for the assailants in sexual assault cases on school campuses and often, justice is not served. Universities repeatedly handle sexual assault cases under the same merit they would a plagiarism violation or other violations of student conduct. A student at the University of Indiana faced suspension for the summer semester after being found guilty of raping freshman Margaux J. (Lombardiemail, 2014).
In fact, a yearlong investigation conducted by the Center of Public Integrity determined that assailants of sexual assault on campus often get off with little to no repercussions for their acts of sexual violence even after found guilty and responsible for the act. Consequently, this leads to many of the victims dropping out of school to avoid a hostile environment where they are forced to face their attacker on a day to day basis. Universities also fear that their reputations are at stake.
Because universities are often sued by the perpetrators themselves rather than victims, they are hesitant in making decisions such as permanently suspending students. This often allows the perpetrator to graduate without any consequence while the victim is surrounded by trauma and lifelong healing such as a higher risk of facing depression, PTSD and substance abuse (Lombardiemail, 2014).
Another factor that largely goes unnoticed in the United States is the impact of race on campus sexual assault. A study that surveyed over 71,000 undergraduate students concluded that black women were at the highest risk of sexual assault. Because our country has focused mainly on campus assault cases involving cisgender, straight white women, ethnic minorities have been largely neglected causing lack of awareness and sexual assaults going unreported (Lawton, 2018). Inclusion, the campus community can be critical in preventing campus sexual assault.
Research also revealed that students who felt accepted as a minority on campus had a less chance of being sexually assaulted by 27%. As mentioned earlier, gender identity also plays a role on the risk of being sexually assaulted. Transgender people are 300% more likely of being victims of campus sexual assault, putting them at the highest risk (Lawton, 2018).
Religion is yet another component to consider when dealing with campus sexual assault. Since some religions forbid premarital sex, universities subliminally discourage reporting cases. These students fear not only consequences within the church but that they will be punished by the university. Students have found themselves under investigation for violating the code of conduct of their university after reporting the incident (Universal Life Church Monastery, 2016).
The patriarchy is a social system that stresses the predominate male role over women in crucial institutions within society. Underlying patriarchal framework support rape culture in the United States. The stronghold of men seeking dominance is a contribution to sexual assault. The language used to describe sex has patriarchal tendencies as well. Women are often referred to as a piece of property and the idea of sex is warped as pleasure being taken from women rather than given. Other contributions of the patriarchy and a need for power is finding sexual violence acts, such as rape, as arousing. This social system also contributes the bystander effect that might prevent someone from intervening a witnessed violent sexual act. Overall the patriarchy contributes to the normalization of sexual assault in the united states (Jensen, 2014).
Poverty and sexual assault amongst women shows a strong correlation. Not only can sexual violence forced upon a person cause irreparable damages in a person’s economic wellbeing, leading to unemployment and homelessness, but research also finds that poverty is among one of the root causes of sexual assault in women (Rape, P. C. A., 2007). Sexual violence as a result of poverty includes but is not limited to sexual harassment, sexual abuse, sex trafficking and blocking access to preventive health measures such as birth control.
Victims and survivors of sexual assault that struggle with poverty have harder time reporting incidents. Decisions are based on an economic stand point, for example, a victim might opt out of reporting an incident since they cannot miss work to attend court. Startling statistics show that 24% of homeless people reported seeing someone else being sexually assaulted. Research shows that 44% of homeless youth live in fear of being raped while living on the streets and 70% of those that are homeless have experienced some form of violence. (Rape, P. C. A., 2007).
Politics also play a determining factor on campus sexual assault. In 2017, Secretary of Education, Betty DeVos rescinded college rape policies that had been put into play by former president Obama, which gave guidelines as to how universities should go about handling sexual assault cases. DeVos along with the Trump administrated argued that former policies implemented by Obama racked up excessive cases and that claims must be “fair and impartial, giving everyone more confidence in its outcomes” (Fritze, 2017). Once again rulings like these have a negative impact on discouraging students from reporting acts of sexual violence forced upon them. DeVos decision, which prevented the loss of federal funding from non-complying schools, is a major step back in campus sexual assault prevention, awareness and reporting (Fritze, 2017).
The It’s On Us (to stop sexual assault) campaign was developed on September 2014 as a national movement to end sexual assault on campus. The mission of this campaign is to help define the definition of rape. Many times, students are not aware that what has happened to them is sexual abuse. It’s On Us works to recognize that non-consensual sex of any kind is sexual abuse. The campaign also focuses on identifying situations where sexual assault may be prevalent on campus such as poorly lit areas at night. Identifying these scenarios allows for college campuses to collaboratively develop safer environments for its students.
It’s On Us teaches students about the consequences of the bystander effect and how to intervene in scenarios where a person has not or cannot physically give consent. As discussed, our society heavily normalizes rape culture and focuses on blaming the victim rather than the assailant. This campaign proactively creates an environment that is supportive and caring for its victims while emphasizing that sexual assault, in all cases, is unacceptable. The campaign uses may tools such as interactive and informative discussions on campuses to spread awareness and emergency crisis hotlines and supports that enable students in taking the right steps towards reporting. Since its commence in 2014, over 300,000 people have pledged against sexual violence. It’s On Us proudly works with over 500 campuses in the united states and is only expected to continue seeing growth as the years progress (It’s On Us).
References
- Fedina, L., Holmes, J. L., & Backes, B. (2016, June). How Prevalent Is Campus Sexual Assault in the United States? Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.nij.gov/journals/277/Pages/campus-sexual-assault.aspx
- Fritze, J. (2017). Trump rolls back Obama-era guidance on campus sexual assault. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/politics/blog/bs-md-devos-title-ix-maryland-impact-20170922-story.html
- Hefling, K. (2014). Justice Department: Majority of campus sexual assault goes unreported to police. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/education/four-five-acts-campus-sexual-assault-go-unreported-police
- Headline News. (n.d.). Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http://www.itsonus.org/
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- Kamenetz, A. (2014). The History of Campus Sexual Assault. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2014/11/30/366348383/the-history-of-campus-sexual-assault
- Krebs, C. P., Lindquist, C. H., Warner, T. D., Fisher, B. S., & Martin, S. L. (2008). The campus sexual assault (CSA) study. US Department of Justice.
- Lawton, G. (2018). The Groups Most At Risk For Sexual Assault. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.bustle.com/p/campus-sexual-assault-disproportionately-affects-minority-groups-with-black-transgender-students-most-at-risk-46070
- Lombardiemail, K. (2014). A lack of consequences for sexual assault. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.publicintegrity.org/2010/02/24/4360/lack-consequences-sexual-assault
- Lonsway, K., Archambault, J., & Lisak, D. (2009). False Reports: Moving Beyond the Issue to Successfully Investigate and Prosecute NonStranger Sexual Assault. The Voice, 3(1).
- Maxwell, Z. (2014). Rape Culture Is Real. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http://time.com/40110/rape-culture-is-real/
- New, J. (2015). The ‘Invisible’ One in Four. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2015/09/25/1-4-transgender-students-say-they-have-been-sexually-assaulted-survey-finds
- Nunez, V. (2016.). New Data Indicates A Rise In Sexual Assault Allegations Despite Decreasing Campus Crime Numbers. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http://genprogress.org/voices/2016/05/26/43612/new-data-indicates-rise-sexual-assault-allegations-despite-decreasing-campus-crime-numbers/
- Quinlan, C. (2016). The Campus Sexual Assault Epidemic Is Even Worse For LGBTQ Students. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://theestablishment.co/the-campus-sexual-assault-epidemic-is-even-worse-for-lgbtq-students-98caa6afc9dd
- RAINN. (2016). Campus Sexual Violence: Statistics. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.rainn.org/statistics/campus-sexual-violence
- Rape, P. C. A. (2007). Poverty and sexual violence: Building prevention and intervention responses.
- Southern Connecticut State University (n.d). Rape Culture, Victim Blaming and the Facts Retrieved March 20, 2018, from http://www.southernct.edu/sexual-misconduct/facts.html
- Universal Life Church Monastery. (2016). Injustice and Outrage: Sexual Assault at Religious Universities. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.themonastery.org/blog/2016/06/the-problem-with-outlawing-sex-at-religious-universities/
- Zimmerman, E. (2016). Campus Sexual Assault: A Timeline of Major Events. Retrieved March 20, 2018, from https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/23/education/campus-sexual-assault-a-timeline-of-major-events.html
