Courtesy of Atlantic10.com
NEWPORT NEWS, Va.—The Atlantic 10 Conference will partner with the White House and other sports entities to sponsor and promote the “It’s On Us” campaign, designed to bring an end to sexual assaults on college campuses. Atlantic 10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade was in attendance at the White House on Friday as part of the official “It’s On Us” announcement by President Obama and Vice President Biden.
The A-10 will contribute to the movement by utilizing its media platforms and assets to raise awareness of the campaign. This is in line with the focus of “It’s On Us,” which is designed to impact campuses by mobilizing the student communities, supporting many student-led efforts, and collaborating with private partners, like the A-10, that have powerful reaches with college students and on campuses.
“It is appropriate for the Atlantic 10 to be at the forefront in addressing and combating this issue, which undermines the fundamental goal of ensuring the safety of all students, including student-athletes,” stated McGlade. “Intercollegiate athletics programs have unique positioning within the campus environment, which provides the opportunity to influence the issue of sexual assault not only within the athletics community, but within the broader student community as well. The A-10 is proud to join this coalition and offer our resources and assets to spread the word and raise awareness of this issue.”
One in five women in the US today is sexually assaulted while in college, and most of those assaults occur during in the freshman or sophomore years. In the great majority of cases (75-80 percent), the victim knows her attacker, whether as an acquaintance, classmate, friend or (ex) boyfriend. And many of these offenders are serial perpetrators.
“It’s On Us” is aimed at fundamentally shifting the way society thinks about sexual assault. It’s a declaration that sexual assault is not only a crime committed by a perpetrator against a victim, but a cultural problem in which everyone has a role to play. The campaign hopes to reframe sexual assault in a way that inspires everyone to see it as their responsibility to do something, big or small, to prevent it. There will also be a special focus on reaching and engaging men.
The campaign is a project of Generation Progress with support from the White House, Mekanism and Pvblic Foundation that was designed following a 90-day report from the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault. Mirroring the conversation that was begun by the Task Force, the campaign has been developed over the past five months by working closely with a wide cross-section of stakeholders, including student groups, Presidents and Chancellors of colleges and universities across the country, college sports organizations, and advocates for survivors of sexual assault.
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