[176] in Discussion of MIT-community interests
Let's END Rape@MIT
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Aimee L Smith)
Sun Apr 22 16:06:13 2001
Message-Id: <200104222004.QAA16859@nerd-xing.mit.edu>
To: Nnennia Ejebe <nnennia@MIT.EDU>
cc: "Steven R. L. Millman" <millman@MIT.EDU>, mit-talk@MIT.EDU
In-Reply-To: Your message of "Sat, 21 Apr 2001 17:56:48 EDT."
<200104212157.RAA23740@melbourne-city-street.mit.edu>
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Date: Sun, 22 Apr 2001 16:04:42 -0400
From: Aimee L Smith <alsmith@MIT.EDU>
MIT also was required by the federal govt to do a survey on sexual
assault of undergraduates. The response rate was close to 50% and
it was done, I believe, in 1998. These data supposedly
are available to students, but so far, we have not received
access to them. (Perhaps for logistical rather than political
reasons, but I urge others to try and get them as well if
you are interested. Gina Baral in Health Ed has them.)
LEARN MORE
http://www.dcrcc.org/facts.html
http://www.rape101.com
http://www.mit.edu/stop/www
http://www.campusoutreachservices.com/confession.htm (if you have a strong
stomache...)
books:
*_Against Our Will: men, women, and rape_ Susan Brownmiller
*_Understanding Sexual Violence: a study of convicted rapists_ Diana Scully
*_After silence : rape and my journey back_ Nancy Raine
_Cunt: A Declaration of Independence_ by Inga Muscio
*_Unwanted Sex: the culture of intimidation and the failure of law_ by Stephen
Schulhofer
*_Women against violence against women_ Conference compendium, 1985
_I never called it rape_ Robin Warshaw
*indicates MIT library has it
PROTECT YOURSELF!
I am a HUGE advocate of full contact self-defense training. I
wouldn't feel safe walking home at night without having has some.
Still, the problem of date-rape is much harder as assailants
take advantage of the trust that their "date" puts in them. The
best advice women can get (or men who find themselves a target)
is really trust that little feeling in your gut. If your gut tells
you not to trust this person, don't question it. Make up some
reason to end the date or get near people or whatever, but go against
society's training that tells us to put politeness before our own
sense of safety. I have heard it said this way, once, "humans
are the only species of animal that will go into a sound-proof
box (i.e. an elevator) with someone their instincts tell them not
to trust." And they do it out of politeness. I argue you can
put safety first and work politeness in by create white lying...
"Oh, I just remembered I was supposed to meet someone..." or
some such lie. You don't owe strangers the truth.
HEAL TRAUMA
If you or a friend is attacked or abused or raped or even threatened
with one of these, (man or woman), that person should pursue some
sort of healing process that makes sense to them. It could be in
part spiritual, psychological, meditative,... whatever makes
sense to that person, but only they can decide how to regain a sense
of self-safety and bodily integrity... there is no magic formula
that works for all... Rape is a lot like evicting someone from their
own body. Many survivors describe a sense of "going someplace else"
during the traumatic experience and a sense of disconnect from their
own body. That isn't good as everyone should feel safe in their
own body, so adequate healing needs to occur for the person to feel
at home again in their own skin...
HELP MAKE CHANGE! (right here at MIT)
Students are organizing to try and get some meaningful awareness
programming on date-rape back into orientation. That way, hopefully
if people get a GRT who isn't as responsible as Steve is with his
students, then they won't be totally in the dark. (But definitely
keep up the great work, Steve! ) There used to be a theater troupe that
tackled this and other issues during orientation, but that fizzled out
and nothing else has been brought on line. Last year, when students
from "Stop Our Silence" and then later Social Justice Cooperative tried
to get something into orientation we hit a brick wall. Now students are
meeting with administration to ensure something is done for this
coming fall. So far Dean Benedict has promised it will be covered,
which is great news. The only job remaining is to be sure it gets
adequate time and focus so that it isn't watered down to worthlessness.
To get involved with the orientation campaign, contact stop-officer@mit.edu
(Stop Our Silence exec list.) And of course, there is the usual issues
of administrators thinking they are the experts and feeling that they
can make all the important frame-work type decisions without student
input.
WHY BOTHER?
No one program is going to solve a societal epidemic. Yet, the more
we give people information about the realities of safety here at MIT,
the more we can help people make informed choices... some people's
parents don't give them the low-down about rape b/c they don't like
talking about sexuality with their kids or they don't know themselves.
Friends can often be a great source of support and info, but sometimes
they are also perpetuating myths based on stereotype and hype... taking
an hour or two to discuss these issues and explain what counseling and
medical and law-enforcement resources are available on campus could
really help keep the guard up for the most dangerous time for young women,
the first three months of their college career... women will never have
equal access to all that a place like MIT has to offer until the annual
rape statistic becomes ZERO...
I know far too many survivors of date-rape, child sexual abuse, and rape--
mostly women, but some men as well. No one deserves to be evicted from their
own body. I know we are all busy folk and there are many wrongs in
the world, but if you have a spare bit of energy and want to help out,
together we will make some real progress on ending this terror campaign
against all women and many men.
In hope,
Aimee
