Despite campus programs and advocacy, sexual assault continues to plague this campus.
Last Friday, Ohio University Police Department released the Clery Report, detailing on-campus crime statistics for the past three years. The report says there were 15 reported sexual offenses in 2010, compared to nine in 2009.
The rising number should be alarming to anyone living on campus and in residence halls and a serious concern to everyone involved with OU. There’s no reason women on this campus should feel uncomfortable walking around on campus on any given night.
The lack of campus lighting will always be a huge factor when it comes to sexual assault. Poorly-lit parking lots and roads continue to make women feel unsafe while walking on campus. But until lights are installed, university leaders need to take a stand against the perpetrators of these crimes in order to decrease the number of sexual assaults.
Until this number drops, the university community needs to start thinking proactively about preventing sexual assault on campus instead of reactively. Although Walk A Mile in Her Shoes and Take Back the Night are excellent ways to raise awareness for the issue, it’s just a reactive program. Now, OU needs a proactive program.
One solution could be creating a program that forces administrators, Student Senate or other university leaders to be visible on nights and weekends in troublesome areas on campus such as the parking lot behind Christ the King on Stewart Street or the dark streets between Uptown and housing. It would send a “no tolerance” message for sexual criminals and demonstrate that this campus is taking sexual assault seriously, and we are doing what we can to stop it from happening.
Another solution could be creating a “Sexual Assault Edu” freshman have to participate in, similar to the AlcholEdu program. Both men and women would be able to take a hands-on learning approach with interactive videos and presentations. Every student would have to become familiar with sexual assault instead of the same group of students who participate in the walks.
Sure, we have blue lights and awareness marches but there is something very powerful about having members of the university available on-campus during times of need. Walking down Court Street in high heels can only do so much.
Sexual assaults awareness is ballooning. But as a university, we need to come together and take the next step. We need to start thinking about having proactive programs along with advocacy programs.
Editorials represent the majority opinion of The Post’s executive editors.
