Every two minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted. Every two minutes.
That means by the time you walk from Davis to the SRC, by the time you smoke a cigarette or brush your teeth, make a waffle in Lenoir or even read this page, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted. Reading this statistic, you probably feel angry, sad, even a little scared -- and you should. But all too often, we also feel helpless.
Sexual violence is a real problem, the magnitude of which can be overwhelming. And as we begin to understand the enormity of this problem, we almost simultaneously ask, "What can I do?" This question is too often left unanswered.
But not today. Instead of merely bombarding you with disturbing statistics, we've also got a few ideas about how you can help.
One, roll up your sleeves, pick your favorite color of paint and add your handprint to a sign that reads, "These Hands Will Not Commit Acts of Sexual Violence." You can do this all day today in the quad.
Two, visit the Clothesline Project, an annual event that exhibits T-shirts made by survivors of sexual violence. The shirts will be displayed in the quad all day today.
Three, join campus and community members at 7 p.m. in the Pit for the annual Take Back the Night March.
Or of course, you could do all three.
Every two minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted. Today, we ask you to give up two minutes of your day -- maybe by visiting the Clothesline Project or dipping your hand in paint or joining us to Take Back the Night. Two minutes of your day in which you know that you are doing something to stop it.
