Picture five women who you know well. They can be friends, relatives, co-workers. Any five. Picture their faces, their names, a happy memory you've shared with them. Now picture them on a college campus.

One of them will be sexually assaulted.

According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, one in five women are sexually assaulted while in college. One in five.

On top of that, it says more than 90 percent of sexual assault victims on college campuses don't report the assault. Rape costs the United States more annually than any other crime, with approximately $151,423 spent per rape. That's almost an entire four-years worth of college tuition.

These statistics are mind-boggling. In 11 months, I'll step foot on a campus as a college freshman. By the end of my four years on that campus, I could be that one out of five. I could be the victim of rape. Your sister, your girlfriend, your best friend, could be that one out of five. It's something that young girls have to face before heading off to college. They're taught to always watch their drink, never go anywhere at night alone, don't run with headphones in, don't dress provocatively and don't drink too much, lest we be the next 1 in 5.

I'm taking a self-defense class, not because I'm afraid, but because I want to be prepared. I was told, by a school speaker, in a meeting with all the junior and senior girls, that whether I like it or not, no matter how careful I try to be, I will be put in a bad situation once I go to college. The only thing I can do is try to be well-equipped to deal with it and protect myself. There were no boys present at this meeting.

I'm not arguing that every man should feel responsible whenever a sexual assault is committed against a woman. But I am saying that in most cases, teenage boys don't really understand the dangers women face. They don't know what it's like to be afraid to walk to your car at night alone, or the intense feeling of anxiety that washes over you when you pass a man on the street and see him ogling you, or the unjust shame and disgust you feel when you're cat-called on your way to work.

I was cat-called walking with my mom down the street by a bunch of college guys from a parking deck at 2 in the afternoon. I'm in high school. They're in college. And I was the one feeling at fault. There's something wrong with that. Now, I'm not saying all women are victims. Don't get me wrong, I think women are some of the toughest, most badass people on the planet. But I am saying it would be nice to have the other sex watching our back once in a while, instead of being seen as the enemy.

The reason I bring all of this up is simple: Brock Turner. You probably know him as the former-Stanford swimmer turned rapist. In case you don't know, here's a synopsis: he was convicted of three counts of felony sexual assault for the rape of an unconscious women after a party. He was caught by two students who were biking past "thrusting his body on top of an unconscious, half-naked woman behind a dumpster." His defense was that they were both too drunk to know better. He blamed alcohol for his actions. His father pointed to his stellar swimming record as a point for leniency, saying a potential 14 year prison sentence was "a steep price to pay for 20 minutes of action." The victim (and I hate having to use that word because I think she deserves more than that; I think she's strong and I think she's a survivor) said he had done "irreversible damage" to her and her family. The judge said he would be sentenced to six months in prison.

Let's break this down for a second. First, the alcohol claim. Brock Turner believes it was the alcohol and "campus drinking culture" that influenced him. That he wasn't of his own mind, and it was just the booze making him do that. I'm sorry, do they put warnings on beer cans saying "may cause urges to forcefully, without consent, finger and rape a girl behind a dumpster?" They don't? Are you sure? So you're saying everyone who drinks doesn't go out and try to sexually assault innocent women? Well, then I guess it wasn't the alcohol's fault. I guess that means it was almost as if you were the one to make the decision to rape that woman. Funny, how that thought process works. I guess it turns out actions have consequences. Weird.

Next, the 20 minutes of action. First, let's just strip all of the details away. Let's take out everything but the basics: A male. Put his fingers. In a female's body. Without consent. That is an unquestionable fact. Oh, but in case you were wondering, he was a good swimmer.

Now tell me, how does that change the facts? What part does that fact that he can swim fast have to play in the actions he took to physically and emotionally scar this woman and her family? His social class and athletic abilities should have no bearing on the consequences of his actions. Because those "20 minutes of action" should have a huge impact on his life. In those 20 minutes, he just added another person to the already 81 percent of women who report significant short-term or long-term impacts such as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (National Sexual Violence Resource Center) as a result of sexual assault. But yes, let's all lament the loss of a promising swimming career.

And now, to top it all off, he was sentenced to just 6 months in prison. A first offense possession drug offender can get 1 year in prison. A shoplifter can get up to 1 year in prison. Theft of a $1000 flat screen will receive, at minimum, 16 months.

But guess what? On September 2, Brock Turner was released. He served just three months in prison for rape. And according to Health Research Funding, an adolescent sex offender who does not receive treatment will commit an estimated 380 sex crimes over their lifetime. Now if this is a boy who blames his actions on alcohol, what are the odds he's going to seek treatment for being a rapist?

Then I guess it's only a matter of time before we hear of a repeat offense from him. And if that repeat offense occurs within the 14 years he could have (and should have) been spending in prison, what are we supposed to tell that girl and her family? Sorry, but he was a really good swimmer.

To read the victim's letter, click the link here: https://www.buzzfeed.com/katiejmbaker/heres-the-powerful-letter-the-stanford-victim-read-to-her-ra?utm_term=.pnMx0jG72#.phnGYaJEP

To donate to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center's Relief Fund for Sexual Assault Victims, follow the link here:

http://www.nsvrc.org/relief-fund