Consent Week, a series of events put on by ASU’s sexual consent advocacy group I Always Get Consent, continued Wednesday evening with a dinner and dialogue meant to educate students and spark conversation about the issue.
Kat Hofland, the organization’s president, started the evening by opening the floor to discussion with attendees in the student center and defining terms such as sex, consent and sexual violence.
Hofland presented statistics showing that an estimated 1,500 ASU students report being sexually assaulted per year. Only 19 of these cases were reported to ASU police and only 20 to the Office of Student Rights and Responsibilities, Hofland said.
“(In society) men can only win if they are having sex, and women can’t win at all,” Hofland said.
She also noted that victims are not always a specific shape, size, color or gender.
Hofland said she joined the organization when she entered college, knowing she wanted to become an advocate for ending sexual violence. Having had her own experiences with this issue, she encouraged people to get angry and help put a stop to rape culture.
“I Always Get Consent” was founded by ASU student Jenna Herman and her friends in 2009 after Herman was sexually assaulted. The intent is to raise awareness about the truth surrounding sexual assault, promoting support for victims and defining consent.
“(This event) should be part of orientation,” said interdisciplinary studies senior Ruben Cuk Baak. “The awareness is really important, especially for young females.”
Although she is not expecting the organization to gain traction at other universities, Hofland said she hopes to continue events across other ASU campuses and within Phoenix itself. She said not all schools address topics of sexual assault and consent properly, but she encouraged them to try.
I Always Get Consent approached student organization DPC Aware in the summer of 2014 hoping to broaden what was mainly a Tempe affair to the Downtown Phoenix location. With the positive response and awareness this week has had with students, DPC Aware President Corina Tapscott sees the partnership becoming an annual affair at the least.
“I’m really happy to see so many students come out and listen to Kat share her story,” Tapscott said.
The week of awareness will wrap up Friday with swimming at the Sun Devil Fitness Complex at 5 p.m.
Contact the reporter at Kkondrath@asu.edu
