Hidden Rape Culture Has Become A Pattern In Universities

It is a devastating truth that sexual assault, in its many forms, is extremely prevalent in a college setting. In fact, according to National Sexual Violence Resource Center, an estimated one in every five women will experience some sort of sexual assault while in college.

The same source concluded, however, that 90 percent of sexual assault cases go unreported. Why is it that instances of sexual assault are made public knowledge, yet we are reluctant to do anything about it? Many schools have been criticized for their handling of assault cases and their reluctance to report statistics to the public.

Schools such as Florida State University, University of Tennessee, and Baylor University, which all have nationally recognized football teams, are being monitored for their mistreatment of sexual assault reports.

These schools have been accused of ignoring sexual assault claims against football players in order to protect their team’s ranking. For instance, the University of Tennessee recently settled a nearly 2.48 million-dollar lawsuit that claimed they turned a blind eye toward sexual assault accusations in order to preserve the reputation of their football players, according to a National Public Radio report.

It is a harrowing reality that so many women and men who have experienced sexual assault are told that their pain and suffering is not nearly as important as the school’s reputation.

Although many schools are making an effort to safeguard campuses and improve how they deal with such reports, sexual assault has run so rampant on college campuses that the federal government has had to investigate more than 55 universities for possible violations of Title IX, which deals with how schools handle sexual assault cases. A list of the specific schools being investigated was made public on the U.S. Department of Education’s website in 2014.

As a woman who plans on pursuing a degree and remaining in college, these statistics chill me to the bone. Not only do I worry about whether I will simply become another “statistic,” but I worry for those who have been silenced. So many young women and men must walk around a campus in which they do not feel safe or respected, and that can be devastating.  

The New York Times originally made public the fact that in 2015, FSU only reported 13 out of 114 sexual assault claims in 2014 to the federal government, citing tangible proof that we have a long way to go in the pursuit of demolishing the rape culture within our college campuses.

We are further perpetuating this cycle of victim blaming where the blame for the assault shifts from the attacker to the attacked. We tell sexual assault survivors that perhaps they “drank too much” or dressed too “provocatively,” and essentially deserved their assault.

When schools disregard reports in order to protect their football teams, we cite the victims as collateral damage in the pursuit of a national football ranking or positive reputation. Although many schools are making conscious efforts to halt sexual assault, we are still living in a time where many students fear the possibility of being assaulted on their own campuses.

We must put an end to this pattern of apathy and indifference, and instead turn our attention to the shocking realities surrounding us every day.