Higher Ed and Social Justice: Violence Awareness

I was able to attend a kick-ass Higher Education conference this Monday at NYU. One session in particular that really stood out for me was a presentation on the hidden victims of Intimate Partner Violence with Linda Mills. Much of what was said was generally familiar, seeing as how my previous job in student affairs was at a Women's Center. Linda Mills brought up some really startling statistics around the perpetrators and victims of sexual violence including that women were almost just as likely to commit acts of violence against their partners as men. And that while often times the physical acts done by men are more severe and damaging, in most violent relationships both parties have committed some form of violence.

At the Women's Center, I worked with the Assault Contact Team, was expected to help folks struggling with different personal issues around trauma and identity, and helped to plan Violence Awareness Week. In terms of the training I received for those roles, very rarely was sexual violence against men discussed. Perhaps this is because the job was housed in a Women's Center, but as one of the only visible resources for victims of sexual violence, I can't imagine it would be easy to come in and use our services. Add the fact that much of the education on sexual violence deals mainly with women, it seems nearly impossible. Of course, this dialogue almost completely leaves out the queer experience and same-sex intimate partner violence, which occurs at the same rates as heterosexual couples. If anything, men were recruited into Violence Awareness through ally building.

Take Back the Night marches, sexual assault speak out events, across the country have only recently begun allowing men to participate, and that’s only if they allow men to participate at all. But I wonder what violence awareness campaigns and support services would look like if they were a bit more inclusive. Personally, it makes sense to me that there would be some women-only spaces. It can be really hard to talk about violence, and even the slightest triggers can make the experience all that more intense. However, there is a real gap in support for male survivors of sexual violence on college campuses, and hopefully through more work like that of Mills this issue will receive more attention.

What are your thoughts?