Feminist Majority Foundation today celebrates the release of the first report from the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault.
“The release of this report is an important step in fighting the scourge of sexual assault on college campuses,” said Eleanor Smeal, President of Feminist Majority Foundation. “We are thrilled that the White House is developing concrete actions and guidelines to support survivors and assist universities in preventing sexual assault. No student should have to face sexual violence while at school. Neither should they be abandoned by school officials they trust to protect them.”
The report, titled “Not Alone: The First Report of the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault,” details steps the Task Force will take to prevent sexual assault and support survivors on college campuses, using recommendations it gathered from a wide variety of people during a 90-day review period. Among other steps, the Task Force will pilot and evaluate sexual assault prevention strategies on campuses, provide specialized training for school officials, and make federal enforcement efforts more transparent and clear with the launch of a new website: www.NotAlone.gov.
In January, President Obama created the Task Force and released an initial report that found 1 in 5 women have been sexually assaulted in college, but only 12 percent of student victims report the assault. In addition, dozens of schools have recently been placed under federal investigation for mishandling sexual assault cases on campus.
The Feminist Majority Foundation, through its network of hundreds of college campuses nationwide, has launched its Campaign to End Campus Sexual Violence to pressure universities and colleges to do more to reduce sexual assault on campus. The Feminist Majority Foundation is participating in several coalitions on many campuses and providing training for student activists to combat this issue.
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