When we all walked onto the campus of The University of Alabama, most of us found ourselves excited about the unlimited opportunities available to us–a time for a fresh start, to build new friendships, to learn what we really wanted to do in life, to discover all of the incredible college majors on our campus or how we would change the world overnight in all of the leadership positions we could find. Others enjoyed the idea of the solitude they might find in being somewhere new, and many were terrified of how to even get to class the first week. There are those who came to celebrate the national championships and root for the Crimson Tide, and still others who wanted to join teams to pursue their ultimate goal of playing on the big stage. Regardless of what brought you to UA, the idea of being sexually assaulted never crossed your mind.
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It is time for our campus to change the culture of how we view sexual assault and support victims. The phrase “sexual assault” is not easy for many to even verbalize, much less think about. It is all too easy to ignore there are one in five women sexually assaulted on college campuses each year and one in 16 men. Why talk about sexual assault when we can just act like it doesn’t happen? Because these are real numbers, but most importantly, they are real people. They are our friends, our sisters, our brothers and our classmates.
As a community of students, we are one family, and families ought to respect one another, step in for one another and stand beside each other regardless of our differences. It is time we start the tide of change that stands up and steps in when we know someone does not or cannot consent to sex. It is so easy to sit the bench in life and to walk across our stately quad, passing by each other and looking the other way. I would challenge our students to do better, be better and honor the dignity and humanity of every person by being active bystanders.
An active bystander does not look the other way. When we see something is wrong and a person is being sexually violated or at risk of being sexually violated, we need to say something. We do not let our friends walk alone late at night or ignore their requests for a designated driver. We hold our friends and ourselves accountable, and we never blame the victim.
In order to address sexual assault on our campus, I felt it was necessary for everyone to not only become aware of the issue, but to feel comfortable talking about it in order to prevent it. It was for these reasons, as a SGA Senator, I met with other campus leaders and our Title IX coordinator a year ago to begin the discussion on how the student body could become actively involved in a sustainable program to end sexual assault at the University. I was introduced to a program at the University called UAct and also researched the national “It’s On Us” campaign supported by the White House. It was the perfect partnership to create an initiative on our campus.
I am proud of the proactive stand SGA has taken to end sexual assault. President Spillers and I have assembled a task force of diverse leaders on our campus to continue the dialogue and to create evolving programs and events, including as many other student organizations and members of the Crimson Tide family as possible. This is bigger than ourselves. It is bigger than our campus. It is a movement of change for the better, and at The University of Alabama, it’s on us to stop sexual assault. It’s on all of us. Please take the pledge, stand by each other, step in when necessary and never blame the victim. I know, regardless of why each one of us stepped onto this prestigious campus, we are far more than what makes us different. The Crimson Tide family cares about each other and it’s time we start acting like it.
Jordan J. Forrest is a junior majoring in public relations and political science. She is the SGA Executive Director of Programming and Advancement and the leader of the It’s On Us initiative.
