The Prevalence of Sexual Harassment on College Campuses...

The Prevalence of Sexual Harassment on College Campuses One night, â€Å"Amy,† a student at State, was hanging out with some friends in her room. â€Å"A bunch of people were there, and one guy I didn’t know was obviously drunk and kept asking me out. I tried to brush him off, and didn’t take it seriously because he was drunk. I left to go to sleep. â€Å"He followed me to my room and kept banging on my bedroom door, trying to push it open and asking me to talk to him. I talked to him for a little while just to appease him.† Finally, the guy’s friends coaxed him away from Amy’s door. â€Å"I don’t know if that’s sexual harassment,† she said. â€Å"I wasn’t worried that he was going to assault me. The whole thing was just annoying.† Judging by the numbers,†¦show more content†¦But what is sexual harassment? This tricky issue can often be difficult to pin down. According to the Sexual Assault and Harassment Resource Handbook (which is handed out in squad groups during orientation), sexual harassment is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Behavior can be considered harassment if it is undesired and creates an offensive environment. The most severe form of sexual offense is rape. The state of Massachusetts defines rape as the penetration of any bodily orifice without consent and with force or threat of force. Over 50 percent of reported rapes were committed by people who the victims knew well. In addition, seven percent of rape victims are male. Sexual harassment and assault are often associated with alcohol use: In a recent survey of college students, 75 percent of male perpetrators and 55 percent of female victims said they were drinking at the time of the attack. Sexual harassment statutes are slightly different where alcohol is concerned. â€Å"Problems arise when one party is more intoxicated than the other,† said Peer Advocate of Sexual Respect Tregony Bucknell-Pogue. According to Massachusetts state law, it is illegal to have sex with someone who is incapable of giving consent due to intoxication, unconsciousness, orShow MoreRelatedAcquaintance Rape And The College Social Scene1595 Words   |  7 PagesAcquaintance Rape and the College Social Scene In Acquaintance â€Å"Rape and the College Social Scene,† the authors, Sally K. Ward, Kathy Chapman, Ellen Cohn, Susan White and Kirk Williams, main purpose was to report on a study they performed of the cases of sexual assaults at a specific college campus. 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