Sexual Assault at Western: Consent Education is Still Not Enough

The first week of university should be exciting. You’ve just moved away from your parents and are meeting all kinds of people who could become your lifelong friends. Finally, you are an independent adult. However, if you are a woman, it can be a very different experience. The first few weeks of university have the highest cases of sexual assault and violence, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise to learn that as many as 30 girls were allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted during Orientation Week at Western University. 

The night of Friday, September 10th, at Medway-Sydenham Hall (a residence at Western), was a mess of ambulances and firetrucks, flashing lights tangled with sirens. According to a student living there who chose to remain anonymous, a fire alarm was pulled shortly before 11 pm. As a flood of students rushed down University Avenue, she saw a female student lying on the ground clearly passed out. 

“Her stomach was over the curb and her arms were out and it looked like she was sleeping,” she said. “A couple of her girlfriends were surrounding her and then an ambulance came.” 

According to other accounts from both survivors and witnesses, this was only a small part of what happened. Another survivor was also inside Medway-Sydenham Hall with her friend in the dorm of two boys, all of whom had been drinking that night. The assailant suddenly forced himself on her while she was sitting on one of the dorm beds. 

“I couldn’t move, his hand was covering my face really hard,” she said. “It felt like I was punched in the nose.”

Although reports remain murky, it was later learned that as many as 30 Western students could have had similar experiences of being sexually assaulted, roofied, or even raped that night. However, only 4 incidents were reported to the police and university. This night of horror at Western should not come as a surprise, sexual assault cases on University Campuses are extremely common. One in five women will be sexually assaulted, or victims of an attempted sexual assault while at college. Most attribute this to alcohol which is common in excess at college parties and most campus sexual assaults happen when both parties are not sober. However, humans are not genetically wired to rape others as soon as they touch alcohol so drinking cannot be a valid justification. 

What really causes campus rape is inadequate education systems and a victim-blaming justice system. Western University appears to be one of the better universities with a “Soph” program, where older students mentor younger freshmen, including some education on sexual assault. However, from interviewed “Sophs” it seems the education program is unsurprisingly lacking.

“There are training modules online you must complete in order to soph. However, there is no way to ensure that people are actually watching the videos,” said Elliott, a soph at Western. “It’s pretty easy to skip them [the videos] and just get the answers right.”

Other college students say that their college’s program on sexual assault is only targeted at women and is mostly focused on ways women can protect themselves, the usual “cover your drink” and “don’t leave your drink unattended”. Gender-heavy sexual assault education is an unacknowledged problem in our society. Girls are constantly told to have a buddy to walk home with. Girls are taught to hold keys between their knuckles, to not wear ponytails because it’s easier to be grabbed, to cover their drinks, to not leave their drinks unattended, etc. But how often are men told not to catcall? How often are men told not to see women as objects? How often are men told not to drug someone else’s drink? How often are men told not to rape? Do men know they are not entitled to have sex? 

While there are many male survivors of rape, statistics show that nearly 99% of rapists are male. If a problem is to be solved it should be solved from the root, and there’s no better way to solve this problem than through implementing an adequate education system that educates not just possible victims but possible perpetrators. Statistics show that out of the 11% of students that admitted to raping another student, only 1- 2% said they have committed that crime repeatedly throughout college. The majority of college rapists are uneducated people who do not understand consent. In this case, a better education system will be an effective solution. 

No one should be afraid on their first week of college for fear of being sexually assaulted. College should be a place for learning and a fun transition into adulthood so it is vital that everyone feels safe no matter their gender. Sexual assault, which most often harms women, is the epitome of male entitlement. With education around sexual assault,  especially campus rape, not only can people feel safer around campus, but as this generation grows up and enters the workforce, we can achieve safer workspaces, safer education institutions, and a much safer society.