Sometimes it's hard to fathom statistics. Sometimes they seem like only numbers or a distant problem that could never affect you personally. But sometimes it's important to take a step back and realize that these aren't just numbers, these are people. People that could easily be in your life.
Next week, February 8-12, is National Healthy Relationships Week. This week is meant to raise awareness about domestic violence and sexual assault.
I've noticed that many times that statistics or buzzer terms like "domestic violence awareness" are thrown around, people start to tune out (and I am no exception). We tend to drown out the noise that we continuously hear in class or the emails sent out to us or maybe on some people's Facebook posts. And that's because it's easy. It's easy to disconnect and see these statistics as numbers and not as people; easy to shrug off these issues because we've heard them time and time again. But maybe it's time we start listening. And that's what this coming week is all about.
"Domestic violence is the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another. It includes physical violence, sexual violence, psychological violence, and emotional abuse," (National Coalition Against Domestic Violence). But this week stems even further than just domestic violence, it's just healthy relationships overall. And as college students, we aren't exempt to the issue. As seen in the above statistic, college students are victim to sexual assault more often than imaginable.
What with everything that has happened in the past few years here at Poly concerning this issue, it's important to begin to begin to understand the reality of the situation. It happens more often than we'd like to think. It happens to the people we care about more often than we'd like to think.
It's hard to imagine anything happening to those we love or even ourselves. But the sad reality is we're all subject to it. And coming to college opened my eyes to the frequency of such a reality. When it happens to someone you know, it becomes more than a number, more than just another statistic.
So what is National Healthy Relationships Week?
It's a week designed to "foster the development of healthy relationships, and by so doing, prevent domestic violence and sexual assault." Alpha Chi Omega's national philanthropy is helping victims of domestic violence, so this week is pertinent to their efforts.
At Cal Poly, Alpha Chi Omega will be putting on multiple events to raise awareness and fundraise for the cause.
February 9
Panda Express fundraiser where all the proceeds go to the SLO Women's Shelter.
February 11
Interactive Love Shouldn't Hurt Photo Booth in the UU where participants can define their own definition of love and raise awareness via social media.
Closet for a Cause booth on Dexter Lawn, where local handmade goods will be sold and a portion of the proceeds will go to the SLO Women's Shelter.
Throw Pies Not Punches event on Dexter Lawn, where pies will be sold and thrown at volunteers of the campus community.
Alpha Chi Omega is not the only resource, however. Let's use National Healthy Relationships week as a reminder, as a means of making us aware of the issues at hand. Take this week to get educated and bring to light this often whispered issue. Maybe begin to see these statistics and numbers as people, as an issue that may directly or indirectly affect you. And if it has, know that you're never alone in this.
Here are some resources for education and help:
Safer (Cal Poly)
Women & Gender Studies Department (Cal Poly)
National Resource Center on Domestic Violence
