The handling of sexual assault as a national and college campus-wide issue has changed, said Carrie Bettinger-López, White House adviser for violence against women. But some things need to change a whole lot more, she said.

Bettinger-López spoke in Stolkin Auditorium inside the Physics Building on Monday night as part of Syracuse University’s “It’s On Us” National Week of Action. She provided opening remarks about sexual assault prevention and awareness before a screening of “The Hunting Ground,” a documentary about sexual assault on college campuses, before leaving to board Air Force Two with Vice President Joe Biden.

Bettinger-López, who is the second-ever White House adviser for violence against women, reminded the crowd of about 60 SU community members that in addition to it being the “It’s On Us” National Week of Action, April is also National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month.

Currently, 327,000 people nationwide have taken the “It’s On Us” pledge to end sexual assault, Bettinger-López said.

“This is about developing a robust response that enforces the law, but also sends a message on a societal level about the importance of change,” Bettinger-López said. “And all of you are those change agents. … Just remember how powerful each and every one of you are in your own capacities to create that change.”

After Bettinger-López finished speaking, a short, 60-minute version of “The Hunting Ground” was shown. The documentary is usually one hour and 45 minutes long.

The documentary shared the stories of numerous women and men who experienced sexual assault at their college or university. Some of the schools included in the video were the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Florida State University, Harvard University and Saint Mary’s College, among others.

Following the screening, a five-person panel was held to answer questions from the audience. Members of the panel included Samantha Skaller, a junior at SU who is on the National “It’s On Us” Student Advisory Committee; Susan Pasco, associate director of the Counseling Center at SU; Erin Duran, associate director of the LGBT Resource Center at SU; Eric McGriff, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences and a member of A Men’s Issue; and Miriam Ward, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences.

When asked what it takes to change the culture around sexual assault on college campuses, McGriff said events like the panel and others such as Take Back the Night and the Vagina Monologues are ways students are changing the campus culture.

“On this campus, we have been fortunate that many times we have been at the forefront of this issue. And it’s because we recognize that there is a need for culture change,” McGriff said. “… I think we’ve done a lot and we’re still doing a lot. And it’s about admitting, ‘No, we’re not perfect. No, we haven’t handled these issues perfectly, but we’re willing to do it now.’”

During the panel discussion, Skaller shared part of her story as a three-time sexual assault survivor. She said she faces one of her attackers regularly in one of her Thursday classes, as he was not prosecuted for the sexual assault.

Skaller said the “It’s On Us” campaign has taken two directions regarding a change in culture. The first is about changing the way students view sexual assault and relationship violence and the second is about changing the way the university administration views it.

“(The It’s On Us campaign) is shifting the culture to make sexual assault unacceptable on college campuses,” Skaller said.

But, she added, it is a slow change.

Duran said conversations about sexual assault are often not inclusive of the LGBTQ communities, adding that in order to truly change the culture, they have to be.

“We need to be addressing rape culture, and that also means addressing homophobia and racism,” Duran said.

The next big thing McGriff said he would like to see the university do regarding sexual assault is create a space where all of the campus advocacy groups can get together. This kind of space used to exist at the Advocacy Center before it was shut down in the summer of 2014, he said.

The event ended with a vigil at Hendricks Chapel during which attendees stood for a moment of silence with lit candles, showing solidarity for victims and survivors of sexual assault.

Published on April 5, 2016 at 12:08 am

Contact Sara: smswann@syr.edu | @saramswann