Today, the White House announced the official launch of “It’s On Us,” a media initiative seeking to end campus sexual assault and shift campus cultures into seeing sexual violence as unacceptable. The Feminist Majority Foundation is a campaign partner, so we were in attendance as the President, Vice-President, and various activists and advocates spoke out in support of the campaign.
Here’s a glimpse into what happened!
Lynn Rosenthal (far left), White House adviser on Violence Against Women, led a panel of experts who shared best practices in instituting anti-sex assault and intimate partner violence interventions. From left: Lindy Aldrich, Deputy Director of the Victim Rights Law Center; Sage Hill, student leader from Old Dominion University; Neil Irvin, Executive Director of Men Can Stop Rape; and Andy MacCracken, Executive Director of the National Campus Leadership Council.“It’s On Us” ReceptionValerie Jarrett, Senior Adviser to the President and the Chair of the White House Council on Women and Girls opened today’s launch with a few remarks.Vice President Joe Biden discussed the startling statistics pointing to little, if any, decrease in relationship violence among teens and young adults in the time that the issue has been tracked. Today, he and President Barack Obama stressed the need for full engagement by women and men in the fight to end sex assault and intimate partner violence.Full crowd turned out for the White House’s official launch of the “It’s On Us” campaign.Attendees file in for the start of the “It’s On Us” launch.President Barack Obama called the act of sexual violence more than a crime. He said it’s “a civil rights violation.” The President and Vice President called bystander intervention the “responsibility” of every person.
