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lyssamae:

I’m disheartened to see that the person who wrote the slut-shaming opinion piece (A Female Perspective on Modern Chivalry: Women Need to Face the Facts, November 10, 2011) last semester wrote a piece about sexual assault on campus and victim blames throughout the entire article. This is a poorly written, poorly researched article, and I’m ashamed that this was in my school newspaper.

Firstly, the onus of prevention of sexual assault is on the PERPETRATOR of assault, not on the victim. A person can do everything in their power to protect themselves from assault and still be assaulted. It is not up to the victim. Secondly, the assumption that women are the only victims of assault is incorrect. They are the majority, but there are thousands of people who do not identify as women who are assaulted each year. Thirdly, the women on this campus are women. We’re old enough to claim that title, let us have it.

I /am/ up in arms, Sarah Morris. I’m furious that the Bucknellian allowed this to be published. We have such a huge problem with sexual assault on this campus, and the pervasive idea that women are responsible for protecting themselves from an assault is what contributes to people not wanting to report an assault for fear of being told it was their fault. This stance does the whole institution injustice. I’m frustrated that you, as a member of the sex that is most frequently assaulted, believes that you or any of the rest of us can somehow prevent an assault. Again, the only person who can prevent assault is the person who is going to commit the assault.

I think you would benefit from some more research in this area. Perhaps attending a presentation or panel on sexual assault on campus would open your eyes. There are several interesting and relevant discussions in this area happening on campus on a regular basis.

-Alyssa Mae Gockley

This is so absolutely frustrating and i noticed this sentiment at the bystander presentation too. From the women more so than the men, which just makes me want to hit my head against hard things. It is the cattiness and rumor mill amongst women on this campus that prevents survivors from coming forward to more than a few close friends, if even that.

The article’s author fails to realize that as much as potential victims fear potential perpetrators, we also fear asshats like her that believe it’s all our fault. She fails to realize that you can do everything by the book to protect yourself, you know, that standard list that all freshman women get about not letting your drinks out of your sight, don’t drink too much, don’t walk home alone, etc,  but that’s just measures of protection and the perpetrator can still assault you. Assaults happen when people are sober, when they are friends, when the are plastered, when they’re not friends, when its a mix of genders or the same genders, and the whole gamut.

i know, i know, i’m preaching to the choir. But seriously, when are we going to stop focusing on what the victim/survivor did or didn’t do, and what the perpetrator did do, which was to assault another person and strip them of every ounce of control and dignity and safety (to name a few) they have. When are we going to start telling men (the majority on this campus, and i feel sometimes the root of sexual assault, but i know it comes in all forms, don’t crush me i’m bad with words) on this campus to stop objectifying women, to stop making sex the end game, and to stop being facilitators for this behavior. Why don’t the women who write articles like this want so much to blame the victim and not the perpetrator? Is it part of a competition? to make yourself feel more secure? that’s a shitty game.

We are all guilty of perpetuating the rape culture in some way shape of form, and it’s time we stop this, but it has to be done together.