Although I usually catch up on TV shows a day or two after they air, last Tuesday I decided to watch the new episode of Finding Carter as it commenced at 10 p.m.

Toward the end of the episode, one of the main characters was drugged at a frat party by a male college student who then attempted to rape her. I firmly believe that most viewers underestimate how often this situation occurs. According to RAINN, "Women 18-24 who are enrolled in college are 3 times more likely than women in general to suffer from sexual violence." This is why making situations like this visible on a popular TV channel like MTV, a channel that is built around a young audience, is extremely significant.

In recent years Fraternities have been receiving more and more attention. On college campuses around the country, sexual assault and cases of rape have increased tremendously, with fraternities in the spotlight. A reporter from The Guardian even went as far as to say that rape has become an inevitable part of fraternity life.

This past year, several fraternities were investigated and reported for cases of sexual assault and rape. Studies have found that "men who join fraternities are three times more likely to rape, that women in sororities are 74% more likely to experience rape than other college women." Additionally, a Jezebel article from 2012 brought up an intriguing point that often times these students who commit these crimes often do not comprehend the harm they might cause or even the situation they have put themselves in. They may even see their actions as more of a conquest. The author stated, "It's very clear that many of these people didn't feel like what they were doing was wrong because they didn't (and/or still don't) think of themselves as rapists."

As a college student and as a female, this issue is especially concerning for me. When I go to parties that have alcohol, I am very cautious of my surroundings. Drugs and alcohol are often used to take advantage of women and because of this I end up caring more about my safety than “having fun.”

This past September, which is pretty recent, CNN reported on a new survey done by the Association of American Universities (AAU). The report states that "among female college students, 23% said they experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact- ranging from kissing to touching to rape, carried out by force or threat of force, or while they were incapacitated because of alcohol and drugs."

23% might not seem like a lot, but every woman who makes up that 23% is someone’s daughter, sister, or best friend. We need to protect one another and bring that percentage down to zero.

Sexual assault is not something we can sweep under the rug.

There have been too many cases of rape and sexual assault on college campuses, especially in the last few years. I cannot stress enough how horrific that is.

I should not have to fear for my life, or my friend’s life, or my classmate's life. The reality is any of us could be or become a victim of sexual assault.

Every college needs to wake up and take in that this is a widespread battle and it needs to be fought with everything we’ve got.

#StopCampusSexualAssault #StopCampusRape