Have you had enough?

Many students on campus face issues with sexual harassment on college campuses and schools need to do more to help reduce this major issue. Sexual harassment “consists of any unwanted verbal, nonverbal or physical attention, or contact that is sexual in nature”(1). Actions would consist of “comments about their physical appearance, sex-based jokes, gender-specific put-downs or other language meant to demean, intimidate or threaten”(1).

"62% of female and 61% of male students report having been victims of this form of mistreatment"

Several students believe that whistling, making sexual comments, or gestures are harmless or claim to be “joking around”, but some individuals feel offended, mistreated, and unsafe on campus. They may even come to class less often due to seeing their harasser. To reduce the large numbers, schools, including San Jose State, should do hands on training instead of one sexual harassment online training that anyone could skip through and not engage with. As a student here, I did not know there were safety tips, numbers to calls, as I am probably not the only one. Students should come into the school already knowing their options and that they have people on campus that are here to help. Many individuals do not report this mistreatment due to the fact they feel alone or are scared they don’t have anyone that will believe them. If campuses do not make changes, students may think their actions are acceptable and more and more victims will feel unsafe and alone. “55 percent of college administrators said that current systems are not sufficient to respond to harassment” (2). It should also be known of the consequences one may face is harassing or even assaulting an individual. “20 percent of students said that harassment caused an inability to concentrate in class, and 23 percent said that harassment prevented attendance in class”(2).

Average statistic of women assaulted on college campus
Source: https://www.rainn.org/statistics/campus-sexual-violence   

I believe another reason why individuals think it is okay to sexually harass one another due to what someone is wearing. No matter what type of style one chooses to express, therefore what someone wears does not give permission for sexual advances. While reading through Spartan Daily Newspaper, volume 194 issue 23, in the opinion section on page four, two students talk about victims coming forward and a fashion designer who believes woman may be to blame for sexual assault. News editor Elizabeth Rodriguez discusses how she disagrees with fashion designer Donna Karan and that “the way women and young girls dress should not be seen as a distraction or oversexualized”(3). Karan believes the way woman dress may be a key factor into enticing the victim’s predator.

What one wears doesn't mean they are "asking for it"
It's not the victims fault

Others may believe that campuses have at least done something to spread awareness such as the AlcoholEdu and Sexual Harassment online training and that if one colleges takes more action than another, then they may be known as the “harassment college”.

Regardless, to reduce the statistics and become a more safe campus, schools need to respond more to the harassment. Students who withdraw and begin to feel unsafe and will not be giving their full potential in the classroom.

Works Cited

1. “Sexual Harassment on Campus: What Are Students' Rights?” Study.com, Study.com, study.com/articles/How_to_Address_Sexual_Harassment_on_Campus.html.
2. Roy, Debjani. “What About Sexual Harassment on Campus?” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 29 Mar. 2014,
3. Rodriguez, Elizabeth. “A Woman’s Outfit Choice Does Not Convey Consent.” 2017.