Sunday, November 8, 2009

Some NPA Continued Ed

Nancy Grace recently bumped a story about a serial killer in South Carolina who has so far kidnapped or murdered 10 black women, so that she could instead feature a story on one missing white woman in Georgia. CNN tried to cover up the obvious discrimination by saying "The booking was changed due to news that was breaking that day."

http://thepoliticalpartygirl.com/post/230462439/cnn-bumps-story-about-ten-missing-black-women-for-1


-Stephanie Rau

Monday, November 2, 2009

Witnesses Didn't Help Rape Victim

Here is this semester's first installment of SAPAC's Networking, Publicity, & Activism program's Continuing Education. The NPAs present an article, advertisement, or other source of information at our weekly meetings to keep the group updated on current stories and issues pertaining to sexual violence, gender, empowerment, and feminism. The following link is to a horrifying story of a 15-year-old girl who was beaten and raped by multiple people after a school dance last weekend.

http://news.aol.com/article/girl-gang-raped-at-richmond-california/737436


Not only did this terrible event occur, but the school district spokesperson had this to say about it:


http://www.feministing.com/archives/018616.html


Come speak out against sexual violence and support survivors at SAPAC's 23rd Annual SpeakOut! coming up on November 12 at 7:30pm in the University of Michigan League Second Floor Ballroom. SAPAC's SpeakOut! provides a safe, respectful, and affirming space for survivors of sexual violence to tell their stories. All are welcome.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Noodles November!

On Tuesday, November 4th, Noodles and Company on State Street will be hosting a fundraiser for SAPAC from 4-9pm!

All proceeds will go to SAPAC's Survivor Fund. This fund is specifically set up for emergency costs survivors sometimes incur, such as changing locks, flight tickets and emergency medical bills.

When you get to noodles, make sure you tell the people at the cash register that you are here for the SAPAC fundraiser!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Domestic Violence Awareness Month

For those who are not aware, October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM).

Wear purple to show support for victims and survivors of domestic violence!

The Networking, Publicity, & Activism (NPA) Program will be holding a DVAM Rally on the University of Michigan Diag on Friday, October 23 from 12-1pm. Come support us and the movement to end domestic violence!

For more information about Domestic Violence Awareness Month, visit http://dvam.vawnet.org.

For more information about SAPAC and other volunteer programs, visit http://www.umich.edu/~sapac.

For more information about the DVAM Rally, email npacoords@umich.edu.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

We still have so much work to do. Devastating news out of Guinea, Africa:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/06/world/africa/06guinea.html

Friday, September 18, 2009

Stats on the Diag

Last week as I was walking across the Diag, I noticed some chalk scribbled on the ground that immediately caught my attention. "1 in 4 women" followed by "No More Victims." My immediate reaction: frustration.

Why, you ask, was I perturbed? I am well aware that between 20 and 25% of college women will experience an attempted or completed sexual assault (according to the Department of Justice), and I believe that this kind of statistic should be advertised to both men and women of U of M's community. I do not, however, believe that the (non-student) self-defense organization who is responsible for plastering these statements on the Diag has any business to do so in a way that implies that being trained in self-defense will keep a person from being sexually assaulted.

For some reason, many people in our society believe that knowing how to beat someone up is going to keep them from being raped. Well, I'm here to tell you that this notion is completely false. To quickly cite some statistics, 90% of survivors were assaulted by someone who they know, and 60% of assaults take place in a survivor's home. Is knowing how to throw a punch going to safeguard you from your study buddy? What about your partner? Maybe yes. Probably not.

Choosing to train in self-defense or to fight back against an assailant should be left up to the survivor, not the greater public. No one knows what he or she would do in the situation until it happens, so it's not anyone's place to pass judgment on what a survivor "should have done." As a Department of Justice survey shows, of survivors who fought back against their perpetrator, only 50% said it helped; the other half said that fighting back actually made the violence worse. This shows that in some instances, fighting back may not be the smartest, or safest, thing to do.

So, to the (non-student) self-defense organization: your messages aren't helping the movement to end sexual violence; they are actually perpetuating society's idea that women must be proactive and do whatever they can to not make themselves a victim of sexual assault. However, we must recognize that it is not a woman's responsibility to learn self-defense in order to protect herself from any possible assaults. Rather, it is a perpetrator's responsibility to not assault someone.

Crosby

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Sexual Assault Prevention Tips That Are Guaranteed to Work!

http://nonotyou.tumblr.com/post/168208983/sexual-assault-prevention-tips-guaranteed-to-work

This is a great (and entertaining) article that does a good job of highlighting some of the issues with current prevention techniques.

There was recently an article on Jezebel (http://jezebel.com/5355724/what-if-keeping-women-safe-meant-educating-men) about such prevention efforts, and what is the most effective way to teach sexual assault prevention. So many times, we hear things like "cover your drink" or "don't walk alone at night" or "use the buddy system." The article at the link does a really great job at turning the table on these prevention methods. It is almost so absurd that it makes you laugh, but at the same time, it says exactly the right things. It is not the survivor's responsibility to protect themselves, rather it is the perpetrator's responsibility not to assault.

Come to our mass meeting on Wednesday, September 23rd, at 7pm or 8:30pm in the SAPAC office to talk more about this, and similar topics!

- - - - - -
Alayna

SAPAC All Over Campus!

Yes, it is true. The NPAs (Networking, Publicity, & Activism volunteers) have been all over campus tabling at practically every single welcoming event this University had to offer. From Escapade, to Festifall, to Rackham Graduate Welcome Fair, we were there!

Here we are at Gayz Craze! (Alayna Schreier & Kristin Lakatos)




If for some reason you missed our table, it's not too late! We will be at Northfest this Thursday, September 17 from 11-3 pm on North Campus in the Duderstadt Courtyard. We will also be at the InBalance Community Wellness Fair from 2-5 pm on Saturday, 9/19. This event is at 1000 McIntyre (near the Northwood Apartments on North Campus).

Some other reminders:

**SAPAC is currently accepting volunteer applications for our fall training session. These can be found at www.umich.edu/~sapac.

**SAPAC's MASS MEETINGS will be on Wednesday, 9/23 at 7 and 8:30 pm in the SAPAC Office (located at 715 N. University above sushi.com). This meeting is open to ANYONE interested in SAPAC! Please come and check us out!

If you have any questions, please email npacoords@umich.edu.

Crosby

Monday, June 1, 2009

Another Place to Get Involved---SafeHouse Center!

Hello all,

My name is Crosby Modrowski and, next year, I'll be one of the new NPA Co-Coords. Currently, I am a volunteer intern for SafeHouse Center, Washtenaw County's Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Center. I just wanted to take this opportunity to update people on SafeHouse Center's fall training dates:

Friday, 9/25, 5:30-9:30
Saturday, 9/26, 9 am-6 pm
Sunday, 9/27, 9 am -6 pm
Friday, 10/9, 5:30-9:30
Saturday, 10/10, 9 am-6 pm
Sunday, 10/11, 9 am-6 pm

As a SafeHouse Volunteer, you can be part help out with the Shelter's 24 hour helpline, be part of the Domestic Violence or Sexual Assault Team, or directly interact with children of survivors.

Along with volunteer opportunities, SafeHouse Center also offers counseling, legal advocacy, and support groups for survivors of sexual violence.

For more information about SafeHouse Center's volunteer programs and services, please visit www.safehousecenter.org!

Oh, and for those of you who shop on amazon. com, SafeHouse has set up a deal with amazon that allows SafeHouse Center survivors to receive part of the purchase! So, the next time you shop on amazon, please do so by using the link below!

http:///www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect-home/safecent-20


Crosby

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Officers Charged With Rape in Attack on Drunken Woman"

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/29/nyregion/29cops.html

Disturbing points of the article
1. Cop mentioned using a condom, so say bye-bye to DNA evidence
2. After officers assisted the woman home, they left on another call. Then, they came back, TWICE, for different durations of time, the last being 34 minutes (evidenced by surveillance footage from apartment security system)

And of course there are classic, textbook victim-blaming statments made by attorneys and whatnot in the article.

I knew about this, because some of my housemates were saying that "oh, she probably seduced them and is now blaming them for." I took this opportunity to be an active bystander...and to educate them on the fact that she could not give consent in her state, and that by saying that they were blaming her for the incident.

It's stuff that this that really makes my blood boil...and makes me realize how much more we need to educate people.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

rEVOLUTION!

rEVOLUTION: Making Art for Change, the fourth annual art exhibit in conjunction with the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center will run this spring from April 3rd to April 16th.   

Join us on Opening Night April 3rd at 7:00 pm at the Union Art Lounge for live music and refreshments.  

We encourage all artists, writers, poets, and performers to submit work addressing sexism, sexual violence, gender, and empowerment!  The deadline for submissions if Friday, March 20th. 

To submit work send slides, pictures, or make an appointment:
rEVOLUTION Committee:  rEVO9@umich.edu

Join the rEVOLUTION! Speak out and help make change!!!

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Sexism in Advertising: Bad Advertisements

This ad adds sex appeal and glamour to a lifeless woman.  This ad is sending the message message that being emotionless and passive-even dead-can be sexy or appealing traits in a woman. This mindset can perpetuate the acceptance of dehumanizing women through rape, sexual assault, domestic violence, and other forms of sexual violence. KLS's ad, which physically shows this woman lying on the ground, suggest women's role is one that is subordinate.


Images such as this contribute to a rape culture that condones and promotes sexual assault, domestic violence, and other forms of violence against women by glamorizing a dead woman, depicting her in the ultimate form of powerlessness. The man is shown without remorse, conveying the message that it's okay to treat women in this horrific manner. Does Duncan Quinn think images of abuse like this one are sexy?


We find this ad for Bertolucci and the Serena A. Garbo line of watches to be offensive because of the ways in which it objectifies women. The woman in the ad has been reduced to a body; her face is not within the frame. This unfortunate positioning suggests that women are valued principally for their bodies. Further, the background of the picture, many staring men who have surrounded the woman, indicates that the objectified woman exists only to satisfy male sexual pleasure. The absence of the woman’s face means that the reader cannot determine whether or not she even desires this attention—suggesting that the woman’s opinion doesn’t matter. The fact that the men in the ad entirely surround the woman embodies and emphasizes the fact that women have been trapped by the male gaze.



This advertisement both infantilizes women and turns them into objects. The models in the advertisement are most likely in their late teens or early twenties and yet they are dressed as if they are young adolescents. In doing so, Juicy Couture idolizes the look of being young and innocent, and turns the women into objects of desirability, even in a sexual sense. This is evidenced by the bearing of the models’ thighs. The models, especially the one on the left, are given a doll-like appearance, thereby making them lifeless and turning them into objects. The positioning of the legs and arms, the tilt of the heads, the size of body in comparison to the perfume box, and the lifeless gaze of the eyes send the message to young women that they should be just like dolls, which would remove their sense of autonomy and agency.




The woman depicted has her head displayed off the page and is highlighted by text referring the lack of eye contact she should expect to receive when wearing Vassarette bras. By reducing women to mere body parts, Vassarette is promoting sexist behavior towards females by condoning a societal view which values women for their bodies and not their character. furthermore, Vassarette?s emphasis on the unimportance of eye contact uses sex-role stereotypes to portray women as subordinate to men. By focusing solely on attention to female breasts, Vassarette implies that a woman?s role in life is to be merely a sexually stimulating being, not an intellectually stimulating one. This advertisement not only furthers stereotypes, but objectifies women of all races, ages, and backgrounds.


The focal point of this advertisement is very clearly the woman’s breasts. The woman is featured in this advertisement solely as a sexual object. The advertisement creates an unattainable standard of beauty for women as she is very thin and has extremely large breasts and a flawless face. The slogan featured at the bottom of the ad reads, “Believe it or not, this sweet little thing can.” This implies that people should not expect much from women, as though they are merely “sweet little things” who are not capable of any real accomplishments.


This advertisement is demeaning to women by clearly stating that they are not as beautiful or desirable before covering themselves in makeup, doing their hair, and putting on sexy clothes. This ad is further demeaning because of the way it compares women to an inanimate object. In addition, the woman has nothing to do with the advertised product, she is not using it in any way, so she is only there as sex appeal.



Elizabeth Arden's advertisement in Allure Magazine exemplifies the culture of perfectionism that we live in where a woman's body is reduced to an object of imperfections. By using an actual manikin in their ad rather than a human body, Elizabeth Arden only furthers this idea that an actual woman will never live up to the standards that we have placed upon her.






This ad portrays women as superficial, with nothing more to worry about than conquering the urge to indulge in a pink frosted doughnut or denying themselves a popsicle. It also mocks the idea of a strong woman by arming her with a tricycle, pot lid or office chair to beat her temptation. This series of ads plays on the stereotype of young women being obsessed with their figures and says clearly that they are worth nothing more than how they look. It promotes the idea that women are concerned with the unimportant, such as how to “survive a snack attack”. Even as a woman is pictured in an office, her coworkers look on in surprise and grotesque shock as she beats a doughnut with her chair. This gives the idea that women are not to be taken seriously, even in the workplace.




Lily of France eroticizes this model. She is presented in a way that she looks powerless and weak. Also, Lily of France uses this model to perpetuate the unattainable standard of beauty defined by extreme gauntness. The emaciated model represents an unhealthy standard for young girls.





This ad was chosen as one of the worst ads because it demeans a woman and is suggestive of sexual violence. In this ad, the woman is blindfolded and we cannot see her face. The reader cannot tell if this woman is consenting to this act or if she is being forced to do this against her will. That gray area for interpretation is unacceptable and promotes sexual and domestic violence as well as contributes to rape culture. This type of advertising only contributes to promoting submission and denying human rights. We would like to see this advertising strategy change to promote a safe, positive environment and combat violence.




Sexism in Advertising: Good Advertisements

This advertising strategy is  positive because of the ways in which the ad portrays motherhood in such a positive way.  The ad features a woman holding a baby in her arms.  The advertisement is for the ring on the woman’s right hand.  On the side of the ad, there is a message.  The message states “Hold on to those fleeting moments that matter the most.  An important anniversary, a proud accomplishment, a new arrival.  A Tiffany celebration ring captures your feelings for all time.”  This ad celebrates womanhood.  It does not view a ring solely for an engagement, but as a symbol for something positive to celebrate in life.  A ring does not just have to be an indication of marriage; it can be an indication of many of life’s accomplishments.  This ad celebrates the joy of childbirth, womanhood, and all of life’s little celebrations that may often go unnoticed. 


This advertising strategy is positive because of the ways in which the ad portrays women in a positive light.  The ad features a woman sitting on the grass in her running shoes.  Across the ad is the phrase “Be more satisfied with the grass on your own side of the fence.”  It is a very empowering message because it inspires women to be happy with the way they are.  The ad does not portray some unrealistic body type women should strive to have; it just encourages them to be healthy.  Though the ad does show just the woman’s legs, they are not featured in a vulgar or subjective way.  I think it is great to finally see an ad that encourages women to be happy with their body type, whatever it may be.

 

This advertisement sends a positive message when it comes to women and athletics, because sports are often perceived to be dominated by males.  “Running like a girl,” a statement that is often used as an insult, is both celebrated and mocked in this ad.  As clearly stated, these women would be “running like a girl” because they are infact women.  However, this ad tells women to be proud of their own abilities and to embrace their sex and athletic power.


This ad draws attention to the unfortunately prevalent problem of domestic abuse.  It sends the message that no woman is alone in her struggle against domestic abuse, and support is available to help every single victim.  This advertisement is especially effective in that it provides readers with a way to get involved in this issue by providing a phone number as well as a website dedicated to the cause.  Moreover, the woman featured in the ad is strong and confident, staring directly at the reader.  This image is incredibly refreshing as images of weak, over-sexualized women are incredibly common in most popular media. 


This advertisement was chosen because it sends the message that women of all sizes, shapes, and colors are desirable and beautiful. In our culture today, many woman and young girls are taught through the media that they should be striving to attain the “perfect body,” which translates to being skinny and perfectly proportioned. Body image disturbance not only have emotional affects but can also lead to physical illnesses such as eating disorders. It is important that companies take responsibility for the absurd image women are expected to compare themselves to, and change the focus of advertising to one of acceptance and empowerment. This ad not only empowers women in general, but also empowers women of color. It promotes acceptance of one’s body while also promoting acceptance of all people regardless of their race or outward appearance. By empowering women and encouraging equality, Curvation is combating sexual and domestic violence as well as rape culture. 


The Citigroup advertisement breaks away from hegemonic gender stereotypes.  The ad depicts a woman who is lying halfway beneath a car, with a toolkit next to her, in the process of fixing some mechanical problem with her car.  This advertisement shows that women can enjoy hobbies such as restoring cars, which is traditionally viewed as a male area of interest.  The ad specifically addresses this when it says, “As a little girl, I didn’t play with dolls.  I played with carburetors.”  In addition, the ad does not rank one gender over another, but instead treats both genders as equal.  For instance, the women in the advertisement enjoys to wear high-heels, which is an action typically associated with being feminine, but the advertisement portrays a woman wearing heels and fixing a car as very empowering instead of ranking her so-called feminine and masculine qualities in relation to each other.  Also, the advertisement treats this behavior as normal instead of as an anomaly, which further acknowledges that breaking hegemonic gender roles is common and acceptable.

This advertisement is empowering to women because of the way it portrays a woman of color as a strong and dedicated person.  She is shown being physically active and fit, which breaks the stereotypical idea of women as a sex object or homemaker.  Finally, this ad describes how this woman achieved the goals she set for herself as a child, showing her pure determination and success at what she does. 


Thursday, February 19, 2009

MADE (Moms & Dads for Educating to Stop Teen Dating Abuse)

Dear friends and family,

I have recently become a MADE (Moms and Dads for Education to Stop Teen Dating Abuse) State Action leader for Michigan. MADE is a national, grassroots movement of moms, dads, educators, teens, and ANYONE who wants our youth to be educated about teen dating abuse. As someone who experienced relationship violence as a teenager and young adult, I am incredibly excited about this project and I hope that you will join MADE with me.

Last week the tragic violent incident involving popular teenage singers Chris Brown and Rihanna has highlighted the need for teen dating violence awareness and education. Our young people are aware of the story. Now is the time for a teaching moment and for ensuring that we educate about the crisis of teen dating violence and abuse. According to the Department of Justice, females between the ages of 16 and 24 are more vulnerable to intimate partner violence than any other age group--at a rate almost triple the national average [U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, Special Report: Intimate Partner Violence and Age of Victim, 1993-99 (Oct. 2001, rev. 11/28/01]. Nearly one-half of adult sex offenders report committing their first sexual offenses prior to the age of 18 [Ron Snipe, et Al, “Recidivism in Young Adulthood, Adolescent Sexual Offenders Grown Up,” 25 Criminal Justice & Behavior, 109,117, (1998)].

If you believe that education on teen dating abuse is essential to our youth, go to the MADE website at http://www.loveisnotabuse.com/made/index.html and sign our petition. Then you will become one of the hundreds (soon, thousands) of people across the country who have joined MADE and want to prevent dating abuse among our teens. 

Becoming a MADE member can be as simple as signing the online petition. But there are other things that MADE members are doing and ways to get more involved. MADE is working hard to ensure that Michigan government mandates dating violence education in all public secondary schools ASAP. That has not happened yet, but for now schools can take it upon themselves to begin this essential education. This is where your help is needed! 

Check out our online MADE toolkit. The Education Development Center and the Liz Claiborne corporation developed a teen dating violence curriculum that has been used in more than 1500 schools across the country. This three-day curriculum is free and easy to use. Any health teacher (or really ANY teacher) can integrate it into their courses. You can provide this free curriculum to any junior high and high schools in your district, area, alma mater, or anywhere else you're comfortable with. You can find the "Love Is Not Abuse Curriculum 2008" under the resources section of the website (http://www.loveisnotabuse.com/made/resources.html) along with a template letter to send to schools. 

There are a lot of other resources on the site at http://www.loveisnotabuse.com/made/resources.html. Please take a few minutes to join MADE by signing the petition, and let me know if you do. 

Now is the time to take action. If not now, when?

Best,
Sara Vos


*****

*PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY*
http://www.loveisnotabuse.com/made/index.html

Sunday, February 15, 2009

Stalking

The NYTimes featured an article today about stalking, bringing the issue more to light. This just goes to show how important educating people is, and how prevalent these issues truly are.

NYTimes article: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/us/15stalk.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=stalking&st=cse

Department of Justice updated SVS: http://www.ovw.usdoj.gov/aboutstalking.htm

Keep up the wonderful work!

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Welcome to SAPAC's new blog!

Hello!

Welcome to the new blog for the Sexual Assault Prevention & Awareness Center (SAPAC) at the University of Michigan. This blog will be maintained by SAPAC professional staff as well as student volunteers. We'll include information about news and events as well as showcase postcards from our ongoing PostSecret campaign. You can leave comments and questions and staff will get back to you via the blog or email.

For those of you new to SAPAC, we offer free and confidential crisis intervention and advocacy for survivors of sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking, and dating/domestic violence. If you know a survivor, you are welcome to use SAPAC's services. We also have three active student volunteer programs.

Stay tuned!