BYSUZANNEGOLDBERG|OCTOBER24,2016,10:05PM
IspokelastweekattheUniversityofChicagoaboutashortlawreviewessayIwroterecently,called“Istherereally
asexbureaucracy?.”TheessayrespondstoanarticlebytwoHarvardLawSchoolprofessorswhoarguethat
collegesanduniversitiesoverstep—atthebehestofthefederalgovernment—bytalkingwithstudentsabout
“good”sexratherthanjusttherulesagainstsexualassaultandharassment.
Idisagree.Workshopsandtrainingarenotaboutapreferredtypeofsex,orevenaboutencouragementofsexual
contactatall(thoughI’mtoldthatmanyworkshopsdoprovidefunandusefulinformation).Instead,theyhelp
underscorehowimportantitisinourcommunitythatstudentstreateachotherwithrespectinthisrealm.
Butwhatissexualrespect,anyway?Andwhyshouldyoucare?
SexualrespectatColumbiaisacommitmenttoactingwithintegrityandrespectforothers,anditisa
responsibilitytodowhatwecan,individuallyandcollectively,toreinforcetheethicsofcareandmutual
respectinourcommunityevenamidourdifferences.Itisalsotheunequivocalrefusaltotoleratesexual
harassment,sexualassault,andotherformsofgender-basedmisconduct.
Op-ed:http://columbiaspectator.com/opinion/2016/10/24/why-sexual-respect
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Here’swhyyoushouldcare:Weareinthiscommunitytogether,andthewaywetreateachothermatters.
Also,datacomingdirectlyfromColumbiastudentsviaamajorsurveyreleasedlastyearshowthatmany
studentsreportbeingsexuallyharassedbyclassmates.Somehavealsoreportednonconsensualsexual
contactfromanotherColumbiastudent,often(thoughnotalways)afterdrinkingtogether.
Thismisconductinterferesprofoundlywithpersonalhealthandwellness,academicsuccess,student
organizationsandteams,andeveryone’swell-being.But,sotoodoesthesilenceandapathysurrounding
it.
Howmanyofuscansaywedon'tknowanyonewhohasbeenharassedorsubjectedtodatingviolenceor
assault,oranyonewhomayhavecrossedthelineandharmedsomeoneelseinthisway?And,
importantly,howmanyofusfeelequippedenoughtostepinorgethelpforafriend,eveninourown
community?
Thegoodnewsisthatwecanworktoshapeourcommunityandthewayswetreateachother.TheSexual
RespectandCommunityCitizenshipInitiativeprovidesonereadypathtogainskillsandknowledge—and
tocontributetomakingadifference.
Simplyput,theSexualRespectInitiativeisaboutunderstandingandrespondingtothelinksconnecting
us,sparkingconversations,anddoingwhatwecantocreatechange,notjustinthismoment,but
throughouttheyearandinourlivesbeyondcampus.
Asareminder,here’showtogetstarted:SelectfrommultipleoptionsontheSexualRespectwebsite.All
studentsareencouragedtotakepart;newstudentsmustparticipatebySunday,Oct.30.
WhenIfirststartedworkingwithstudents,faculty,andadministratorstocreatetheinitiativein2014,we
sataroundatabletogetheroverseveralmonthstothinkaboutwhatwouldbethebestwaystoengage
ourcommunity.Studentstooktheleadondevelopingtheformat—workshops,films,onlineoptions,and
resourcesforhealingandresilience,andanartsoptionthatevolvedintotheopportunityforindependent
projects—whichmanystudentorganizationsandindividualssincehaveseizedupontocreate
conversations.
Columbiaistheonlyinstitutionwithaninitiativeofthiskind,andtheSexualRespectInitiative’s
recreationeachyear,aswellasstudents’continuedparticipationinit,willhelpmakeevenmore
powerfulthislinkbetweensexualrespectandourUniversitycommunity.
Op-ed:http://columbiaspectator.com/opinion/2016/10/24/why-sexual-respect
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