Men’s group works to promote sexual assault, rape awareness

An all-male group, 1 in 4, dedicated to decreasing rape and sexual assault around campus, offers programs to men about how to help a sexual assault survivor.

The name comes from a statistic that one in four college students have survived rape or attempted rape since the age of 14, according to 1 in 4.

Senior Will Tragert, president of 1 in 4, said the club’s objective is to target males and to have "men educate men" about rape and sexual assault prevention.

Freshman Jamie Loveland, a club member, said that "men educating men" is "good because it spreads the word about sexual assault, and guys are more likely to listen when it’s discussed from their own point of view — another male."

Senior Bill Williams, a member of the club, said, "When men acknowledge rape and sexual assault as a problem, it is different than a girl acknowledging it."

The members of 1 in 4 present a program about rape and sexual assault to groups around campus.

Williams said that 1 in 4’s goal through its presentations is to "decrease incidents around campus, and also discuss seriousness of rape jokes and other general myths." The club’s mission idealistically is to have every male on campus see a 45-minute presentation of "The Men’s Program," a workshop titled, "How to help a Sexual Assault Survivor: What Men Can Do."

"A lot of times, girls get grabbed inappropriately or a line is said that’s degrading to them, and they just brush it off," Loveland said. "That’s where it all begins — it’s the small comments that can lead to big things."

Often times, people ignore the issue of rape because it is so "taboo and therefore people do not want to acknowledge the problem," Tragert said. "The biggest thing is that we put the club 1 in 4 out there so the issue of rape and sexual assault is out there so that people feel comfortable discussing the issue."

Williams said, "Being involved in this club since my sophomore year has touched me on an individual level and now I look at things differently, and I am more aware of comments and commercials that degrade women."