Protection from sexual assault requires cooperation
March 1, 2012
Sarah Morris
Writer
I want this to be a call to arms for girls across campus. We as a group need to take charge of our sexual experiences. Sexual assault is an enormous issue across college campuses in the United States, and yes, that includes our coveted “Bucknell bubble.” No longer can we allow ourselves to be subjected to attacks on our bodies and emotions. It pains me every weekend to see girls so drunk they can barely remember where their dorm rooms are, instead going back to the rooms of sleazy guys who just want to get it in.
Usually, it seems, girls are so drunk they cannot remember whether or not a condom was used, whether or not the guy asked if she wanted to have sex or whether or not she even said yes. Sexual assault is tragic for anyone, but what we need to realize is that while sometimes it is unavoidable (as in cases of date rape and Rohypnol, more commonly known as “roofies”), we need to be responsible for taking care of ourselves and knowing when a situation is getting dangerous. That way, we can remove the possibility of sexual assault before it even happens.
A perfect way to minimize sexual danger when you go out is to keep track of and control how much you are drinking. The more you drink, the more difficult it will be for you to clearly express your decision of whether or not you want to have sex with someone. Another way of helping yourself is to think about the guys you will be hanging out with. If you do not feel comfortable being alone with a guy, you need to make sure you are doing activities where other people are involved until you trust him enough to be alone together.
I think the most important key to remember is to look out for your fellow women. We have to work together to prevent sexual assault. Watch your friends at parties and make sure they are in control of themselves; if you see a friend slipping up and drinking so much that she cannot make smart choices, make sure you walk her home at the end of the night. She will thank you in the morning, even if she may seem mad at the moment. The more we help each other, the closer we are to eliminating sexual assault on our campus so that women can be safe every weekend.
Danielle • Mar 2, 2012 at 5:10 pm
This is a very insulting article. What are you trying to say here? Is it that guys are always going to be sleazy jerks just trying to get it in? Or that girls are too helpless to take control of their own actions? You don’t even take into account the fact that so many times a girl will actually bring the guy back to her room. Is it still sexual assault then, if they are both drunk? Obviously the sleazy guy somehow coerced the drunk girl into taking him back to her room because she was too helpless. Your article is extremely biased and one-sided, therefore this isn’t credible at all. This looks more like you or one of your friends was unhappy with a guy they got with while intoxicated, so now you’re retaliating. I appreciate the fact that you try to give advice, but what will this change? I doubt many girls, if any at all, will change their ways after reading this article. So, after reading your oh-so helpful advice, I have some advice to share with you. If you’re going to write an article to make a point, don’t fling insults because it won’t get you anywhere. Second, don’t make generalizations. It looks clear that you haven’t done any real research and it reads like you’re writing this in retaliation to something. Don’t blame others. If you drink too much, that’s your own fault. Self control is a great thing to have, and can help you through quite a bit of situations. People need to own up to their actions.
Bucky Bison • Mar 2, 2012 at 4:48 pm
Your gross overgeneralizations disgust me. “Going back to the rooms of guys who just want to get it in.” Every guy who takes a girl back to his room at Bucknell is “sleazy,” and all of them “just want to get it in?” I don’t think so… how about the guys that really enjoy meeting new people, and really fall for a girl? What about those guys who walk girls back to their own dorms if they are too drunk, or if the girl is too drunk to remember where she lives, will take them back to his own room and make sure she’s okay and has a safe place to sleep? Sure, people can make poor decisions while drunk, but not all of them are nasty and in the name of sex. It is the severe exaggerations in this paper that allow our administration to further crack down on problems that don’t really exist. How about you write an article on how concerned most girls here are with image, and how many of them screw up by drinking too much, make regrettable decisions, and then refuse to take responsibility for the consequences of their own poor actions. Own up. Take responsibility.