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Opinion | More education needed on sexual assault

Kit Hinders, hinderka@muohio.edu

I would like to take a moment to commend and recognize the bravery of an overlooked group of individuals. This is a collection of men and women from all walks of life from every ethnicity and every city. This is a group of people that are often ignored and taken for granted. In Jan. 17, The Miami Student ran a political cartoon that made light of this group's experience. The group I am referring to includes survivors of rape and sexual assault.

The cartoon depicts two policemen, one from Oxford, one from New York City, at a bar comparing their daily troubles. The NYC policeman mentions a rape, while the Oxford policeman addresses underage drinking. The comic of this nature not only devalues a substantial portion of our population, but it also misleads the audience. Rape is a serious problem on every college campus, including Miami University. In the most recent edition of The Miami Student, multiple instances of sexual assault were reported. Moreover, the report only occupied a small corner of the newspaper. This is the beginning of a very important dialogue.

MARS, an on campus men's group, would like to recognize the incredible strength exhibited by every survivor. The statistics may surprise you: roughly 25 percent of college-aged women will experience sexual assault, attempted or successful. These crimes do not occur only in the alleys of New York City, they happen here in Oxford, Ohio. This is a salient topic that deserves our attention. Groups, like MARS, advocate beginning the conversation: one person at a time.