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News Editor Emma Vallelunga
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DAKOTA GILBERT/Cardinal Points
Title IX office celebrates domestic violence awareness BY CHANNING PRINS Staff Writer
Domestic violence is more prominent than people think. “One in four women and one in nine men will experience some form of domestic violence sometime in their life,” Kelsey Harland, a senior majoring in social work and an intern at the Title IX Office at SUNY Plattsburgh, said. The Title IX office has been hosting events all month to help bring light to a bigger situation. This year in particular is very important. COVID-19 has worsened domestic violence. “We have seen, especially across the nation, COVID has just impacted those who are experiencing domestic violence at a higher rate than most things. Hotlines have increased use because in a lot of ways you are isolated,” Zyajiah Nadler, violence prevention, education, and outreach coordinator for the Title IX office said. “In the four months we were on lockdown, many people were isolated with people who may have been harming them, whether it be physically, sexually or emotionally.” The office has hosted many events during the month of October over the years, but with the pandemic, they have had to come up with creative ways to bring awareness to domestic violence. A user-friendly activity calendar is available on the office’s Facebook and Instagram page for people to pick which activity or event they’d like to register for. “We create a calendar
that just has actionable items that people can do every single day because we know people are remote and people are just in different stages of availability as well,” Nadler said. In addition, the Title IX office asked that the main entrance of Hawkins Hall be illuminated with purple lights for the whole month of October to support the cause. Another event it held was a workshop that Harland hosted to speak about important topics in relation to domestic violence. Other events included “Is My Relationship Healthy,” where the group went over the 10 signs of a healthy or unhealthy relationship according to The One Look Foundation. “Oftentimes, we don’t know how to identify it,” Nadler said. “We may question ourselves a lot especially when it comes to emotional values, gaslighting and just all things power and control really. It’s very important to know how to identify.” Harland also spoke about other things during this event, such as the difference between domestic violence and dating violence. “Domestic violence is when two individuals have a child together and/or live in the same household,” Harland said. “[Dating] violence is anyone you have a remote prenamic partner, like a relationship with.” Student involvement is at an all time low right now with events being mainly online due to COVID-19. Nadler said their turnouts have been fluctuating. “For some of our
events, we have had 23 people. [In] the one with Kelsey, we had 12 people,” Nadler said. “[We] had some with three. We’re still trying to figure out what is the best time. Getting people to come out when they are so incredibly tired of Zoom can be difficult.” Not only is it difficult getting students to attend events, it’s also hard to bring awareness to something if no one shows up. “I feel like if it was in person more people would have showed up,” Harland said. “But since it’s on Zoom, not everyone wants to go to an event on Zoom, which I totally understand.” For the rest of domestic violence awareness month, a full list of the office’s events can be found on social media, including a Netflix screening, a talent show and workshops like “How to Shoot Your Shoot Consensually” and “Violence in Communities of Color.” However, there are other ways for students to get involved that don’t involve online activities. Internship applications for the Title IX office are still open and accessible on the SUNY Plattsburgh Title IX website, and the deadline is Nov. 6. “Anyone can be an intern if your application is accepted and the interview goes well. Students should definitely be more involved with Title IX,” Harland said. “It’s a great place for resources if you experience violence.”
Email CHANNING PRINS cp@cardinalpointsonline.com
“For our clinic, less students are on campus, and less faculty and staff are on campus,” Rosenbrock said. “I also think some people got it before the clinic. If we had it when we initially planned it, we probably would’ve had more people.” Doctors across the world are concerned about how the flu will interact with COVID-19 during the pandemic. SHCC College Physician Dr. Deirdre Schaefer said the symptoms of COVID-19 and flu are similar with only slight differences, such as a sudden loss of taste or smell. “As a medical professional, I usually have to test for both,” Schaefer said. “There is such a tremendous overlap between the two symptomatically.” Even without the pandemic, Schaefer advocates for getting a flu shot every year in order to decrease the risk of infection, not just from the flu but potentially coronavirus. “The biggest emphasis that we’re trying to make in the medical community is it’s always been important to get your flu shot, but [it’s] even more so now,” Schaefer said. “We have COVID as this tremendous crisis medically, and then we have flu, and they can happen now together.”
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Friday, Oct. 23, 2020
Schaefer acknowledged some people may be too afraid to go into a doctor’s office or pharmacy to get a flu shot during the pandemic but said the benefits outweigh the risks, based on the fact that the flu vaccine is proven effective to prevent infection. “One of the questions people have is, ‘Can I get them at the same time?’ and the answer is absolutely yes,” Schaefer said. “So if that can happen, what can you do to protect yourself? Well we’re so lucky because we have a flu [vaccine]. It’s even more important than ever to protect yourself from the flu because right now, I can’t say that about COVID.” When it comes to whether students at SUNY Plattsburgh are too scared to get a shot right now, Schaefer said it’s hard to get an exact number of how many students are vaccinated if they pay for a shot outside of the clinic, but she hopes they know how important it is. “In the community, I will say that there’s no reason for anyone in Plattsburgh to not get [a flu shot],” Schaefer said. “All of the pharmacies offer it. So I say [to students], please go get one, you will be pleasantly surprised at how easy and efficient the pharmacies are getting that taken care of.” Email EMMA VALLELUNGA cp@cardinalpointsonline.com