Red Zone | Graphic by Grace Merkle | The Wright State Guardian
Several campus organizations at Wright State University (WSU) consistently strive to raise awareness for the Red Zone by empowering victims and breaking the stigmas associated with assault.
The Red Zone is the period at the beginning of the fall semester through fall break where sexual assault and power-based violence occur more frequently on college campuses.
Organizations raising awareness
The Student Advocacy and Wellness Center (SAWC) works with the National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) each October, Domestic Violence Awareness Month, for the Red Flags event.
However, coordinators for the event, including President Sue Edwards, are opting to initiate this event earlier in order to account for the Red Zone.
“It allows students to write down red flag behaviors down onto literal red flags, and we plant them in the yard of the university so that people can walk by them and get some education and resources, as well as to spark some more dialogue around the issue,” SAWC Assistant Director Destinee Biesmeyer said.
In addition, this approach helps to redirect the blame onto the abusers and their actions rather than perpetuating the cycle of victim-blaming that is often observed in sexual assault awareness.
“‘Don’t leave a drink unattended. Don’t go out alone. Don’t wear certain things. Don’t do this, don’t do that…’ This is putting the responsibility on the potential victim. It makes them feel responsible for what happened and leaves them wondering what they could have done to prevent their attack when the responsibility is absolutely not with the person who experienced the assault,” Biesmeyer said.
NPHC President Dai’Shanae Moore works closely with SAWC and other campus organizations to raise awareness for this issue and hopes to see WSU continue the conversation throughout the entire year and not just during peak times and awareness months.
“At WSU, we want to be known for giving our community a safe environment and that we have taken the right steps to offer helpful programs and resources and have staff and faculty who are trained to deal with these situations and advocate for you,” Moore said.
Effectiveness of current awareness methods
SAWC and other organizations focus on bystander awareness in order to help people close to victims of assault provide resources and support necessary to assist in that process. This approach is effective by empowering students to support one another.
“People can start to recognize what they can do for their friends and their family who may experience power-based violence. These skills are super transferable and can help students at any point in their lives,” Biesmeyer said.
On the contrary, WSU student Mars Hutcheson thinks that the red flags project and other campus initiatives to raise awareness for the Red Zone are not as effective as they could be with further explanation.
“If they just see red flags from a distance they might not even know what that means. But I think it is definitely useful if people are able to read them and see other peoples’ stories,” Hutcheson said.
