Central Michigan Life

Ellen Taylor’s article in the Aug. 25 edition of Central Michigan Life, “Prepare for a weekend of craziness, hook-ups,” provides many helpful suggestions about the consumption (and over-consumption) of alcohol for freshman students. Taylor discusses hangovers and hangover cures at great length.

The article fails, however, to mention anything about sexual assault and its relation to alcohol and incoming freshmen.

Alcohol is the number one rape drug; it is legal, easily obtainable and socially acceptable. For that reason, many sexual predators utilize binge drinking to incapacitate their targets. The only warning about this very real danger Taylor offers is a vague reference to “one or two fraternities on campus that have acquired a reputation.”

The sad fact is that incoming students will have no idea to which fraternities Taylor is referring and thus the warning has little impact.

Freshmen students are the number one targeted group by sexual predators. Sexual Assault Peer Advocates (SAPA), the peer-to-peer sexual assault response group on campus, had a total of 216 contacts due to sexual violence last year. Over 40 of the contacts occurred before the month of October and over 30 of the contacts dealt with freshmen.

What this means is that freshmen are being singled out by sexual predators who prey on their inexperience with college life and lack of support systems.

Taylor’s article makes several dismissive references to incoming freshmen as objects of sexual desire by calling them “everyone’s favorite” and “freshmen we love oh so much.”

Taylor also, perhaps unwittingly, contributes to the “conquest” mentality of sexual assault that permeates society with comments referring to sexual activities as “new notches on the bedpost” and addressing freshmen as “fresh meat.” The latter comment is the most revolting as it seems to almost encourage predation by sexual assailants.

Article Tools