www.alkoholpolitik.ch

In 2008, there were a number of posts on this blog about a rape at the University of Iowa that was terribly mishandled by the school. In the aftermath of publicity about the school’s “poor judgment,” a number of changes were made. The university president publicly apologized, two administrators involved in the case were fired, and the sexual assault policy was revised. A new article (in a Texas newspaper, the Victoria Advocate, oddly enough) following-up on the case also shows that in 2009 the school hired a sexual misconduct response coordinator who was trained to assist victims and make sure they “get treated with care.” So, despite the inexcusably abysmal immediate response for the survivor, the school seems to have taken a number of admirable actions to make sure that such a disaster never happens again. (As an aside, the outcome for the two perpetrators was that one plead guilty to misdemeanor assault and the other was found guilty of misdemeanor assault). … (Source: Google Alcohol News, 01/26/11) by Sarah M in: Campus news,General commentary safercampus.org, 01/25/11 our Online Comment: Talking about alcohol in the context of rape makes sense. Most of sexual violence has to do with alcohol. To reduce harm is one way to tackle the problem. Having lessons on sexual violence is an other way which is necessary too. But to start with the most effective measure is good. The other question is if the University finds the right way to reduce alcohol consumption on the campus. Most of the Universities haven’t found yet a good solution, because there is a lot of money involved. E.g. advertising. There’s a new study this month.