I am disappointed and angry. My anger and disappointment hit me for many reasons and in different ways. The most shocking reason being that the sexual assault claim issued by Delaney Robinson was grossly mishandled. I live on campus. I love everything about UNC – from my professors and classes to Sup Dogs and all-nighters in the Undergraduate Library. What’s terrifying is that my roommates, my friends and I could easily find ourselves in Delaney’s shoes.
Since Tuesday, I have been in awe of how ignorant, indifferent and dismissive people can be when the topic of sexual assault arises.
Sexual assault can happen to anyone, anywhere. Between the blaming and pointing fingers, there is something to learn from some members of the UNC community’s actions in this case.
To begin, let’s define consent. Consent is “permission for something to happen or agreement to do something.” Note the “agreement” aspect of that definition. In most situations, an agreement requires more than one party. In sexual situations, you most definitely need an agreement between two people.
To be clear:
“Yes” means yes.
“No” means no.
“I don’t know” means no.
Not being coherent enough to speak means no.