Sexual Assault Underreporting on College Campuses

BY EMILY MURPHY for S.A.R.A.H.

College is supposed to be an exhilarating time of independence and self-discovery, but for too many students it can be a nightmare of trauma and shame.  Even though we are well into the 21st century, rape is still common on our campuses.  According to national studies, at least one in four college women will be sexually assaulted during her academic career.  However, women are not the only victims: rape can happen to students of any gender or sexual orientation.

Despite the frequency of these terrible crimes, sexual assaults are rarely reported- only about 5% of attempted or completed rapes are ever disclosed to campus officials or law enforcement. In this culture of silence, survivors suffer in isolation while rapists go unpunished and often rape again.  When sexual assault goes unreported, there is no justice.

WashU does have a sexual assault response system, but underreporting is still a major issue.  Though the support helpline S.A.R.A.H. is well known, few students know how to actually report a sexual assault.  To better educate the campus community, our (?) student group C.O.R.E (Community Organized for Rape Education) met last year with faculty members Kim Webb and Tamara King, who are in charge of rape reporting and the subsequent judicial process.  With a new thorough understanding of how our administration tackles rape, we hope to promote the reporting of rape and sexual assault and bring justice to its survivors.