Some people have said that the Coalition Against Sexual Violence's approach is too extreme, and turns people away from the topic, but Lauren Allswede, advocacy coordinator for the MSU Sexual Assault Program thinks that the attention now swarming around the subject may be a good thing for MSU, since rape is a big issue on almost all college campuses.
"I think it's good anytime there's this much dialogue surrounding sexual violence and university response," Allswede said. "This is a very important issue and should be highlighted more often, so I'm glad for the raised awareness and attention to such an important topic."
Allswede, along with Shari Murgittroyd, who is also a coordinator for the MSU Sexual Assault Program, agree that it is important for students, as well as members of the East Lansing community to utilize the services provided to victims and those looking to become more aware of the topic.
According to Murgittroyd, 1 in 4 women will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetimes, and women ages 16-24 are at the highest risk for being sexually assaulting, making it especially important to provide services for college-aged students.
The MSU Sexual Assault Program serves about 400 clients a year, with about 120 of them being MSU students according to Murgittroyd.
The program provides prevention education programming that consists of sexual violence awareness presentations, as well as multi-session workshops to the university community. The program also has a 24-hour crisis line, which provides resources for sexual assault survivors and forms of counseling.
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
The Coalition Against Sexual Violence
The Coalition Against Sexual Violence is a non-registered student organization at MSU whose goal is to combat victim blaming and sexual violence on campus.
The coalition was formed in the fall 2010 semester in response to an alleged rape in Wonders Hall involving two high-profile members of the MSU Spartan basketball team.
In order to get their message across, the coalition does more than just support a rape-free campus.. they actually go out and voice their opinions through actions.
So far, the coalition has held several rallies on campus. The coalition has protested rape and the universities inadequate response to the issue of rape at the Breslin, for Midnight Madness and the first basketball game of the season, at the Izzone Camp-out at Munn Field, the administration building and the Cowles house during the December graduates reception.
The coalition has a list of nine demands, found on their website, that they believe the MSU Administration must meet in order to make MSU a safer place for students.
"We're asking for real results and real policies," coalition member, Ahlam Mohsen said. "We want the administration to know that we're serious."
The coalition was formed in the fall 2010 semester in response to an alleged rape in Wonders Hall involving two high-profile members of the MSU Spartan basketball team.
In order to get their message across, the coalition does more than just support a rape-free campus.. they actually go out and voice their opinions through actions.
So far, the coalition has held several rallies on campus. The coalition has protested rape and the universities inadequate response to the issue of rape at the Breslin, for Midnight Madness and the first basketball game of the season, at the Izzone Camp-out at Munn Field, the administration building and the Cowles house during the December graduates reception.
The coalition has a list of nine demands, found on their website, that they believe the MSU Administration must meet in order to make MSU a safer place for students.
"We're asking for real results and real policies," coalition member, Ahlam Mohsen said. "We want the administration to know that we're serious."
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