Feeling safe at school

FEELING SAFE AT SCHOOL

IT’S POSSIBLE, RIGHT?

BY JADYEN ARANA

Okay. I think I’m ready to leave. Bag–check, water bottle– check, pepper spray– check, wallet– check, SOS alarm– check. Okay, I should be good to go now. That’s a list I find myself mentally going over every time I’m about to leave the house. Guess what? So many women have to go over lists like this every day. Find anything odd about the list? Many will relate, but for those that don’t, pepper spray and an SOS alarm are only two of the many, many self-defense tools bought by women. Imagine having to worry about self-defense and being prepared for the worst on top of the pre-existing worries women face for merely existing in a world full of misogynists, predators and outright vicious individuals. Sounds charming.

As a college student and a woman, I’ve had to develop a hyper-awareness of my surroundings. This type of skill has been adopted and instilled into girls and women early on in life. Growing up, I remember always seeing my mom’s pink pepper spray on her keychain. She eventually bought me a set of my own self-defense tools as I started going out more frequently. Constant worries include: walking to my car or through a parking lot at night, being aware of those around me so I notice if I’m being followed, reading a room and observing body language, etc. It’s saddening to realize that we live in a world where these things need to remain in the back of our minds out of pure survival.

In a college setting, women (students, faculty, and staff) are more prone to being approached by predators and often fall victim to sexual harassment. I would not only like to highlight the dangers female students face but will include female faculty and staff. Yes, harassment happens routinely outside of academic institutions, but there is concrete evidence that supports the statistic that, “percentages of women who experience harassment in different workplaces have found higher levels (58%) of harassment in academic settings than in government (43%) or private (46%) settings” (Dwight Krehbiel). Schools may attempt to aid students facing any sort of harassment or “misconduct”, but their idea of “prevention” comes in the form of Title IX training which only provides information instead of working towards any legitimate action-based prevention.

In an article written by Dwight Krehbiel, a Professor at Bethel College, he explores the reasons why sexual harassment has a high rate in academic institutions. Krehbiel wrote, “A core factor in these high harassment rates is that academic environments have commonly been tolerant of harassment, i.e., perpetrators have tended not to experience negative consequences for their harassing behaviors.” Although there are a growing number of women working in these institutions, schools often overlook what happens to the women in faculty and staff positions as they work in a male-dominated environment daily. It’s crucial to take into account the numerous women who have been minimized and overlooked in the workplace by corrupt institutions. Otherwise, what chance do students have if the root of harassment in schools, on account of perverse transgressors, isn’t eradicated?

Looking further into what the student body has to say about overall safety and sexual harassment, I stumbled upon an online petition some of you may or may not have seen. This petition was started by an anonymous LBSU student four months ago on change.org. Reading the contents of what this student wrote left me in a state of anger toward perpetrators of harassment at LBSU. I gladly signed and hope that this article might give the petition a greater platform. Here’s where we get deeper into the cause of harassment specifically at LBSU.

To paraphrase what was written on this petition, harassment occurs in several departments at school, no surprise there, but we’re calling out the College of Engineering in particular. It is apparently something that occurs daily in this department and little is being done to stop it. Quoting the anonymous student, “I know victims who have been followed from campus to their homes. I know victims who have had to quit their clubs because of their experiences with fellow club members. I know victims who experienced emotional abuse because the harasser could not take NO for an answer. . . Some victims have reported it. Others are too afraid to because they fear for their safety and have learned the campus does not take safety as seriously as they claim to.”

Not to say that any amount of harassment is ever okay, but if harassment is getting so bad, why isn’t LBSU doing anything about it? Students are missing class as a result of abuse and are taking the brunt of the aftermath by not receiving the education they deserve. Why are innocent students facing consequences on account of abusers who face none? School should be a place to focus on studies, get a proper education and interact with friends. It should not be a place to dread coming to. It shouldn’t be a place where you need to stay vigilant to avoid harassment due to certain individuals.

Going back to what the anonymous student stated, “Not to mention ASI, . . . the student government positions that get paid tens of thousands annually in ‘scholarship money’ for their job to help people. One student proposed to ASI’s president to have an anonymous google form (one link per email) to allow victims to share their experiences. The responses would then be used to help develop a plan to promote safety. . . The president agreed but never acted on this proposal. Not even an update.”

It sickens me to know that those chosen to represent us and create a better school environment are doing little to nothing to help those struggling with continuous harassment. Placing all trust in those with higher positions doesn’t mean things get better. It makes matters worse when those with power willingly decide to do little, knowing there are currently victims struggling and assailants thriving at school every day.

We cannot rely on corrupt individuals to solve our problems. No one deserves to be minimized and treated with abuse. And LBSU, please do better.