Letter to the Editor:
What women want
After a week-long Take Back the Night campaign, some
women on campus are left wondering "What now?"
Where can we implement change in a world where one in
every three women is a victim of sexual abuse by the age of 18? How do we
go back to our everyday lives when our heads are filled with the lingering
images of last Thursday’s march downtown?
Now that we’ve had these experiences, it is time we
take action. Our campus is the best place to start making changes. Are you
up to date with the present course of action surrounding sexual abuse and
harassment?
Xavier needs to evaluate its procedures regarding women
on campus.
Free copies of the Sexual Harassment Policy are
available at the Human Resources Office located in Edgecliff. However,
reading the policy may necessitate hiring a lawyer to sift through legal
jargon to help you discover your rights.
As I look outside my window at the orange lawn
surrounding my dorm, it appears Xavier University is too busy with
"Project Green Space" to worry about the needs of its women.
Having an aesthetically pleasing campus may seem
important to the parents of prospective students, but how will they handle
the awkward moment when their daughter asks for a tour of the Women’s
Center? Where are the on-campus support groups for women who are victims
of rape, or who struggle with eating disorders?
What women want is an environment that makes them feel
safe and protected. In the midst of a much-needed campus-wide diversity
campaign, let us remember the words of Abigail Adams: "Remember the
ladies." This campus is home to a great number of minority groups.
Add an additional minority to that list: women.
Make the policies and procedures surrounding sexual
harassment user-friendly, and give us a place to obtain appropriate
information and support. Show us the real statistics for rape and assault
on campus. We know that one in four women are victims of rape or attempted
rape.
Xavier women are no exception. We want to know the
truth and the risks about our campus.
Don’t let another Clothesline Project T-shirt
represent our story. Xavier women need to take back the night from date
rapists and harassers. For all the women on campus who feel frustrated and
marginalized by the policies and procedures at Xavier University, turn the
images and information you saw last week into action.
Without the input of women on campus, we will never
know what needs to be done.
A new email address, Xavierwomen@hotmail.com, will
serve as a forum of ideas for women on campus. This Senate-sponsored
account will be used to compile a list of suggestions; however, change
will not occur just by complaining.
Suggest a new policy, or revise the old one. Speak out.
Tell your story.
It is time for Xavier to support women on campus. It is
only through student voices the change will occur. Take back the night,
and help turn this campus into everything women want.
Amanda Corzine
Class of ’04 | 
