By: Michael Adkison
This story has been edited from its original form to include a statement from the University of Arkansas.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (UATV) — An email sent to the University of Arkansas campus community on the subject of college campus sexual assaults has led some affiliates to criticize it, for what they call its victim-blaming rhetoric.
The email, titled “Sexual Violence Harms Us All,” was sent out late Wednesday afternoon, coming after what it calls “increased reports of sexual assault” on campus.
Since the semester began in January, UAPD has received three reports of rape in college campus dorms, according to their crime log. Last semester, by comparison, there were no reports of rape and one report of sexual assault on campus between August and December.
“We hope an increase in reports signifies that our students trust that we will respond to their needs, and that they know where to turn for help if they experience sexual violence,” the email reads. It also notes that sexual violence on college campuses, and in general, is underreported.
However, the email, signed by Melissa Harwood-Rom, Dean of Students; Liz Means, Title IX coordinator; and Stephen Gahagans, UAPD Chief, has received backlash from several students, alumni, and other affiliates on social media for one paragraph in particular:
“We must all take precautions and exercise good judgement in situations where there is additional risk or heightened vulnerability such as being out alone late at night, leaving our doors unlocked, and especially after consuming alcohol,” the email said.
Critics argue that by asking all students to take precautions, the email promotes victim blaming rather than holding male students accountable for their actions, as well as a lack of legitimate strategies to prevent sexual violence.
Jordan Smith, a junior at the U of A, said that the email was “entirely hollow,” calling it “empty virtue-signaling.”
“As a survivor of sexual violence who has helped other survivors through the Title IX process at UARK, I can say confidently that it is a joke,” Smith told UATV. “I do not feel any more protected by the faux-woke UARK emails than I do by blatant sexists.”
Smith took to Instagram Wednesday night to say she believes the U of A’s email victim-blamed and did not provide reasonable steps to protect victims of sexual violence on campus. She argued that women on campus support each other more than the university and its Title IX office can.
In response to the backlash the email received, the University of Arkansas commented, “We appreciate the feedback received from our campus community about the message sent yesterday afternoon. The intention of the message was to provide awareness of sexual violence and available resources. Despite the best of intentions, we recognize that the message had unintentional effects on many. For that, we apologize. Never would the university want anyone to feel responsible for a crime committed against them. The university strongly condemns sexual violence, has serious policies to address sexual violence, and processes in place for reporting and investigating incidents of sexual violence. The university also provides resources of support and advocacy for individuals who have experienced sexual violence. As a university, we can, should and will do better moving forward.”
One recent graduate, Sarah Werner said the controversial email did not do enough to protect victims of sexual violence.
“I think the email made more of an attempt to stay neutral in the situation to appease both survivors of sexual assault and rapists/perpetrators,” Werner said, “rather than provide provide actionable steps they are taking to show survivors that these resources can really work for them.”
Werner posted several ideas for these actionable steps on her Instagram story, such as punishing assaulters, providing more funding to Title IX, and better preparing dormitory resident assistants to handle these situations. A former resident assistant herself, Werner said she was “grossly under-trained” to handle situations involving sexual violence on campus.
“My second year as an RA, our Title IX training was a pre-made video played by an office employee who clearly had no interest in being there,” she said. “I think that is a failure on the Title IX office and Housing’s part for expecting students to fill these roles and not adequately preparing them in any meaningful capacity, both with skills and emotional support for them.”
Dr. Lisa Corrigan, director of the Gender Studies program at the University of Arkansas, also called the university’s response problematic.
“The email placed the onus on victims to prevent sexual assault,” Corrigan told UATV, “it distributes harm to ‘us all’ rather than focusing on the actual material harm to victims, and it lacks discussion of actual accountability around sexual assault. These are all harmful tropes that do NOT prevent sexual assault.”
Noting that victim-blaming language limits prevention of sexual assault, Corrigan said the university should place significant priority on gender studies, diversity, and equity on campus.
“The data are clear: when universities support sexual education curriculum, gender studies programs, and provide consistent spaces for discussing healthy sexual contact on college campuses, assault decreases,” she said. “The UA can do much better in all of these areas.”
Micah Wallace, a U of A student and the vice president of Young Democrats of Arkansas, tweeted Wednesday night that “telling victims to take ‘precautions’ and that coming forward harms the entire community is the opposite of how we should be approaching discussions about sexual assault.”
Several replies to Wallace’s tweet call on the U of A to “do better,” with some calling the email “disgusting” and “shameful.”
In a series of tweets, Gillian Gullett, a graduate from the U of A, called the paragraph in question “unquestionably problematic,” but notes that the email as a whole is a step in the right direction for the university.
“I think the fact an email was finally sent out to the whole student body is a huge deal and hopefully lets survivors know they are supported, but it definitely needed some work,” she said.
Gullett launched a campaign called “Don’t Keep It Under Cover,” advocating for better access to reporting sexual violence on campus after her own reported rape in 2017.
“While this statement contains some victim-blaming language I don’t support, I’m glad to see her pivot afterwards and acknowledge the reality of the issue,” Gullett told UATV.
Gullett noted that the paragraph immediately following the aforementioned one seems to acknowledge common misconceptions surrounding sexual violence. The email notes, “the reality is that most individuals reporting an assault know the person who harmed them and often describe the person as someone they felt they could trust.”
Sarah Werner said even if the email represents a step in the right direction, the U of A still has a ways to go to prevent sexual assault on campus.
“Just because the university made a step up from a terrible response doesn’t mean that a bad one is an improvement,” she said.