The Seattle University campus was busy this week with a variety of activities, discussions, and creative projects in honor of the school’s Domestic Violence Awareness Week. The week of domestic violence education and awareness ran from February 15 to February 22 and included such varied activities as self-defense classes, informative videos, interaction workshops, and in-depth discussions.
One Out of Three Women
The events, run by the Society of Feminists (SOF) on campus, strived to educate and protect women. Some may not know that one out of three women and one out of three men will be sexually assaulted by the time they are sixteen, or that date rape is the most common form of rape on college campuses. Others might not realize that an estimated 5.3 million women are sexually assaulted each year – or that 15 percent of domestic violence victims are actually men. The workshops and activities encouraged both men and women to report domestic violence on campus and to defend themselves against possible instances of domestic violence, both through building their knowledge and through learning physical self-defense techniques in the event of a sexual assault.
Victims of Domestic Violence
During one moving presentation, the auditorium audience was asked to stand up if they had been the victim of domestic violence or know someone close to them who had been a victim of domestic violence. Almost the whole room got to their feet.
Hopefully, more college campuses across Washington State will start hosting a week of awareness and education for students who may not know about the reality of domestic violence as well as the best ways to report it and prevent it.
