President Obama launched a new initiative to combat sexual assaults on college campuses on Friday.
The initiative, called “It’s on Us,” is a nationwide campaign to spread awareness and to encourage people to do their part to prevent sexual assaults.
“As far as we’ve come, the fact is that from sports leagues to pop culture to politics, our society still does not sufficiently value women,” President Obama said during his remarks with the launch of the initiative.
“We still don’t condemn sexual assault as loudly as we should. We make excuses. We look the other way,” he continued. “The message that sends can have a chilling effect on our women.”
“And I’ve said before, when women succeed, America succeeds—let me be clear, that’s not just true in America. If you look internationally, countries that oppress their women are countries that do badly. Countries that empower their women are countries that thrive.”
Sexual assault happens to around one in five women during college, cited President Obama. Accurate estimations are difficult to find because of the fact that most of those who are assaulted do not report the incidents.
President Obama revealed three parts of the campaign that he and his administration have been carrying out: 1) reminding and guiding colleges and universities that receive federal funding of their “legal obligations to prevent and respond to sexual assault”; 2) creating a task force, called a Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault, whose role is to work with colleges and universities to discuss prevention and response methods and practices; 3) reevaluating existing laws regarding sexual assault.
The campaign also includes encouraging individuals to take a pledge to “help keep women and men safe from sexual assault,” President Obama described. “It’s a promise not to be a bystander to the problem, but to be a part of the solution.”
To further the campaign, the White House has been partnering with various organizations, such as the Office of Women’s Health, EA sports, iHeart Radio, NCAA, MTV, Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN), the United States Olympic Committee, and many others.
“It’s on Us” debuted on Friday with the President’s remarks, and a video featuring celebrities such as Kerry Washington, Kevin Love, and Jon Hamm, showing their support for the cause. Individuals can join the campaign by taking the pledge on ItsOnUs.org.
“This is not just the work of survivors; it’s not just the work of activists. It’s not just the work of college administrators,” President Obama explained, emphasizing the role of every individual. He continued:
“It’s the responsibility of the soccer coach, and the captain of the basketball team, and the football players. And it’s on the fraternities and sororities, and it’s on the editor of the school paper, and the drum major in the band. And it’s on the English department and the engineering department, and it’s on the high schools and the elementary schools, and it’s on teachers, and it’s on counselors, and it’s on mentors, and it’s on ministers.
It’s on celebrities, and sports leagues, and the media, to set a better example. It’s on parents and grandparents and older brothers and sisters to sit down young people and talk about this issue.
And it’s not just on the parents of the young women to caution them. It is on the parents of young men to teach them respect for women. And it’s on grown men to set an example and be clear about what it means to be a man.
It is on all of us to reject the quiet tolerance of sexual assault and to refuse what’s unacceptable.”
