George GennisOf the 68 Washington University students polled by Student Life, 25 percent replied that they had been sexually touched or grabbed against their will, three percent admitted to being victims of unwanted sexual contact, sexual assault or rape and six percent of students had confessed that they had in fact been perpetrators of unwanted sexual contact. Of these, 38 percent said that the above had taken place in college.
Yet it is likely that these incidents and others were never reported.
“I think sexual assault itself, whether on this campus or other campuses, goes highly unreported,” said Washington University Chief of Police Don Strom.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, there were three arrests in 2002 for forcible sex offenses at Washington University. Two were reported in 2003 and 10 in 2004.
This jump in arrests does not indicate, however, that more offenses are being reported.
“Less than 5 percent of completed and attempted [incidents of sexual assault] are actually brought to the attention of campuses or authority of college students,” said Strom.
According to a recent New York Times article, “[A] survey by the American Association of University Women.found that one in six [women] had received suggestive pictures, web pages or messages, while seven percent had had their clothes pulled down and five percent were asked for sexual favors in exchange for a better grade, class notes, a recommendation or other perks.”
Despite the wide variety of conduct that can be defined as sexual assault, victims often assume that anything less than rape does not qualify as assault, said Eleatha Surratt, a psychiatrist at Student Health Services.
Although Surratt has been at the University for only about a year, she has been a practicing psychiatrist for 13 years and has observed that “[various forms of sexual assault] can all produce devastating reactions in victims.”
Such effects might also explain why reporting sexual assault crimes is often difficult for victims.
“The person may be emotionally numb and have difficulty providing the information that is needed,” said Surratt.
After the immediate trauma, longer-lasting effects of sexual assault can take a hold of a victim.
“Prior to coming to Wash. U., I found a broad majority of clients that I would see as well-functioning would but often have a history of some sexually inappropriate behavior, [like] child abuse, date rape, harassment in the work place,” said Surratt. “I see [this] as a major problematic factor for people who may present later with depression or anxiety.”
According to Strom, there is a procedure taken by the Washington University Police Department (WUPD) for those who feel that they have been a victim of sexual assault and or rape.
“We have adopted a sexual assault response commitment that we publicize,” said Strom.
This procedure guarantees that WUPD will meet with victims privately at a time and location of their choice and that a victim’s parents will not be contacted without the victim’s consent.
WUPD is also committed to arranging for medical help and “will fully investigate” reports of sexual assault, said Strom.
By protocol, once WUPD’s investigation is complete, the case is turned over the to St. Louis’ prosecution office for review.
Strom discussed a frequent misconception of sexual assault.
“When people see [a] sexual assault number they think of it in terms of people hiding behind a tree waiting to grab someone,” said Strom. “In reality, the experience we see on college campus is that the person who poses the biggest threat to them is someone they know throughout some relationship and not someone lurking in the shadows somewhere.”
This pattern seems to hold true with the students surveyed. Seventeen of the students who indicated that they had been victims said that the incident occurred with someone they knew-a friend, sexual partner, acquaintance, or a date.
Alcohol also seems to be a factor in many reports of sexual assault.
“Given what we know about the correlation and alcohol use, I think you could jump to the conclusion that Thursday, Friday, Saturday night tends to be time of the week that the incidents are on the increase,” said Strom.
Forty percent of the students surveyed who answered that they had been involved with an incident of sexual assault also said that alcohol and/or drugs were involved.
When either or both are intoxicated, investigating a reported sexual assault crime becomes even more difficult.
“[When intoxicated], people are uncertain of whether they have been sexually assaulted,” said Strom. “People are uncertain about the circumstances in which it occurred, [and then] we find that the survivor or the perpetrators were under the influence of something during the episode.”
On campus, there are several student-run organizations that were put in place to help victims of sexual assault. The Committee Organized for Rape Education (CORE), according to the Student Health Services Web site, “[is a group of] students [who] work to educate the community about rape and sexual assault.” The Sexual Assault and Rape Action Hotline (SARAH) is an anonymous student-run hotline that offers counseling and referrals for those in need. There is also One in Four, a group of men that attempts to educate the community about how men can help prevent sexual assault and rape.