April Is Sexual Assault Awareness Month    

The month of April was recognized in Texas as Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). TAMUG acknowledged April 4 as a day of action, and students were encouraged to wear teal to show support. As sexual assault becomes a more openly discussed social issue, TAMUG joins other campus communities in coming together to increase awareness.

The history of Sexual Assault Awareness Month can be traced back to the 1970’s, to the opening of the first rape crisis center in 1971. The color teal--meant to symbolize trust, communication, and healing--was adopted by activists in 2000 before the first SAAM campaign in 2001. April was nationally recognized by President Obama as Sexual Assault Awareness Month in 2009. 

TAMUG student organizations have combined efforts with one another, and partnered with university administration from Student Affairs and peer educators to encourage education on sexual assault and advocate against its threats. Various events and campaigns have been held on campus, as the TAMUG community creates ways to discuss and approach this very real issue. Such events and campaigns have included Coffee with a Counselor, Sexual Assault Awareness Week, the 24th observation of Denim Day on April 26, and the event Sexual Health Awareness, which was arranged by Sea Aggie Pride and the Residence Hall Association.

As a campus that highly values community, respect, learning, and acceptance, not only have students and student leaders banded together to raise their voices and advocate against sexual assault, but TAMUG faculty and staff wish to continue encouraging and raising awareness and eliminating dangers of sexual assault among student communities as well. 

Ally member and history professor Dr. Kathryn Falvo explained why she believed it was important that university communities acknowledge the issue and presence of sexual assault awareness, stating, “The reason I think it’s really important to address this is because people need the right be in their workspace and feel like they are safe…and so that we can eradicate or at least ameliorate this problem so we can get on with the business of getting smarter, which is why we’re here, to learn about the world around us … but we can’t do that if we are worried about bodily safety.” 

Dr. Falvo imparted that she hopes to see changes and improvements among the TAMUG environment as a result of student activism, and applying years’ worth of acquired knowledge on the forms sexual assault takes and on “bodily autonomy.” While discussing some of the differences she would like to see in the future, Dr. Falvo shared the sentiment that much self-reflection and analysis must be done in part regarding practiced university traditions that could present problems for physical or personal safety and boundaries, e.g. the rumors of the Midnight Yell kiss. 

“The fact we can have a sexual assault awareness week and not talk about how that might be problematic is kind of shocking to me,” she said. “What I don’t want is to maintain this double-consciousness of needing to advocate for victims, talking about sexual assault, but tradition unquestioned … I don’t know exactly how to navigate these traditions, indeed I don’t know all of them that are problematic but would like to see a real analysis of how we change our deepest cultural assumptions.”

Awareness months like April are also opportunities to remind students of the resources available to them on campus when dealing with problems like sexual assault. These resources include: Student Affairs, TAMUG Healthy Relationships, the campus counseling center, crime reports put out by university officials, the CARE team, and the TAMUG police department. 

These services advocate for, support, and act on behalf of students who have experienced a personal violation and are seeking help and safety. Students should also remember that campus employees (with the exception of counselors under confidentiality) are mandatory reporters for dangerous activity on campus, including sexual assault, harassment, stalking, domestic or dating violence, and related issues.

Ken Bailey is a counselor and campus director of career and ability services. When asked if he thought more attention needed to be brought to the presence of sexual assault, he said, “Yes. I think this is one of several issues we need to be constantly beating the drum for but changing the rhythms to keep things in the forefront of people’s minds, and I think it’s great how student organizations combine with administration to get messaging out.”

Mr. Bailey continued: “Frankly, if there was anything I would change, it would be for this month to be a bigger deal earlier in the academic year. I feel like we can talk about it a lot in spring, but everyone takes off in summer and forgets about it. But it is what it is and we work with the opportunities presented…anytime one of these incidents occurs, it’s sad for both the victim and those who want to see justice done when there’s a perpetrator involved. But at the end of the day, nobody’s life is the same after one of these incidents. And it’s always sad on a lot of levels. ”

Now recognized across the state of Texas as Sexual Assault Awareness month, April will continue to provide more opportunities and motivation for Texas A&M communities to take action against this issue and better educate themselves on how to accomplish as much, and to keep students informed about the resources available to them for their support and safety.