College Students Organize Against Campus Sexual Violence

Boston City Councilor Chuck Turner Voices Support for Students’ Efforts

BOSTON – Over 50 students from over a dozen colleges and universities in Greater Boston gathered today at Boston University to develop strategies to confront the crisis of sexual violence on college campuses. Boston City Councilor Chuck Turner participated in the conference by offering his support to student efforts to combat campus sexual violence. CAOS Conference Boston 2003 (Campus Action On Sexual Violence) built upon the alliances and strategies developed at the City-Wide Strategy Session on Campus Sexual Assault sponsored by Greater Boston NOW last April.

“Rape occurs more often than people realize,” stated Pamela Giller, a student at Brandeis University. “It’s nearly impossible to go through four years of school without either experiencing, witnessing or knowing someone who has been sexually assaulted.”

Conference participants primarily targeted their strategy efforts at college and university administrators who are often unwilling to take the necessary steps to support survivors of sexual assault and to prevent further violence. The lack of prevention programs, an unfriendly and unfair judicial process, and a general resistance to change were cited as major obstacles in dealing with head administrators. “Many administrators only care about avoiding bad publicity,” said Boston University student Amanda Roberts who serves as the Violence Against Women Coordinator for Greater Boston NOW. “College officials don’t seem to recognize that their lack of serious attention to this issue and their inadequate response to assault survivors may actual contribute to the further victimization of those who have suffered from violence.”

Ten men attended today’s conference, reflecting efforts in the violence prevention movement to recruit and mobilize men as allies. “Sexual assault was once solely considered a ‘women’s issue,’” said Dave Chandrasekaran from the Tufts University Campus Violence Prevention Project and the Men’s Initiative for Jane Doe. “No one is spared the pain caused by sexual violence. Only by collectively confronting the underlying issues of power and control can we move forward in this movement.”
Participants were grateful for the opportunity to meet, strategize and initiate partnerships with students from other institutions. “Students often feel isolated as they continually face the same frustrations and obstacles on their own campuses,” explained Marni Schultz, President of Greater Boston NOW. “Today students were able to draw from each others’ experiences and efforts to successfully advocate for change.”

The conference was organized by the Greater Boston Chapter of the National Organization for Women, Jane Doe, Inc. (Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence), the Men’s Initiative for Jane Doe, the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, and www.thesafetynet.org. Attendees included undergraduates, graduate students, university staff, and faculty members. In addition to facilitating collective action among students, the conference helped to link colleges with local community agencies that provide support for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence.