In light of the recent Title IX training that we all had to take... Emily Bazelon, a writing teacher for the Yale Law School, sums up many of the sexual assault awareness campaigns that are going on at colleges around the nation:
"In California, Gov. Jerry Brown recently signed an affirmative-consent
bill, making 'yes means yes' the standard at the state’s colleges and
universities. To continue to receive state funds for student financial
aid, California institutions investigating allegations of sexual assault
must determine whether both parties gave 'affirmative, conscious and
voluntary agreement.' Lack of resistance and silence no longer
constitute proof of consent."
Instead of the "no means no" movement that we have been taught, there is increasing pressure to make sure that both parties consent before having sex. Did you find the Title IX training that we did to be helpful? Do you think it will benefit you and other members of the Kalamazoo College community? Is it appropriate to require these regulations for public universities? Read a critique below:
"Even as survivors push for more protections for victims, other groups —
including more than two dozen Harvard law professors, in a recent
statement — are challenging new disciplinary procedures, saying they are
unfairly stacked against those accused of sexual assault."
What do you think? Is this a problem that required intervention or would colleges and universities have solved it themselves? Read the article
here.
I personally did not feel the need for Title IX but I don't doubt that it is useful/needed for others. Following from the Title IX that we did, my biggest complaint of it is that it made men as a whole out to be worse. I understand the stigma, but as a male I don't want to be associated with it; while taking the exam, I felt like it was almost presumptuous for all male's behavior whereas not all men are so forceful. Nonetheless, I am not disregarding the article's or Title IX's purposes at all and I understand that it is a large push for safer campuses. In regards to the training, I do think it is appropriate to require because of the hopeful results; however, I question how much the training can really prevent since it seems evident from both the article and training that alcohol is a highly negative contributing factor. Final note in regards to the article, I think the varying male and female perspectives on intimacy are most interesting, for example, the different perspectives on holding hands in public.
ReplyDeleteI would like to politely disagree with Cam, and say that Title IX is important for everyone. Everyone likes to think that it's not significant to them until something bad happens. No matter how unlikely someone may seem to get into a sexually-charged predicament, any "good" person can do something bad whether intended or not. Therefore, there shouldn't be any harm in being overly informed. Sure, Title IX can be inefficient, but personally I think it's better than nothing. Also, I don't think a majority of people realize the benefits Title IX has already has, and its ability to allow certain topics to be discussed in a way that's more acceptable now that the Act has passed.
ReplyDeleteI think that Title IX is extremely important because it provides students with the information necessary to take the correct action if a situation arises. As the article discusses there is a lot of ambiguity regarding the topic. What may be sexual assault to one person is not necessarily to another. Because of this, encouraging students to have better communication will lead to fewer negative incidents. I don't believe that most assaults are intended, but come from inadequate communication between the parties. Since the negative effects of being harassed or assaulted can be very extreme I am glad that the government passed the regulation. I think most universities would have reached a "yes means yes" policy, but it is better that the process was sped up.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Title IX training is important and will be effective in the long run. However, I had the same reaction as Cam while taking the training. I really love having my gender portrayed as a bunch of horny, aggressive, rude buttheads. Most guys are not like that. The guys that are like that will definitely benefit from this training. I also agree with the Harvard law professors that the system is greatly stacked against the accused in most sexual assault/rape cases, which is usually the man in these situations. My aunt is a public defender and often defends many young men who have been accused of sexual assault/rape. She says while some definitely are guilty, there are many who have done nothing wrong. Often times the male in the situation has the best intentions in mind and has no idea that he doesn't have consent. But, in the current system, it doesn't matter. The male is always at fault for what is often an alcohol fueled misunderstanding and is now off to jail with no future. I think the entire system needs to be reformed to hold both genders accountable for their actions. I think the whole yes means yes policy will help with a lot of the confusion that occurs with consent.
ReplyDeleteAs a person who was in the process of selecting the best Title IX program for K-College student, I truly thought this was very important. Only person who had been through the situation could understand how hard it was and it is even more important for the future generations to understand and to prevent ourselves. Even though, we would say we would not let that happen, you could never know. I believe the yes means yes policy would have a strong impact on the students and bring positive impacts.
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