STAAR looking for a few 'real men'

The "Real Men of Penn" have yet to be revealed. But Students Against Acquaintance Rape are busy searching for them. The group has devised a campaign consistent with their larger goal of encouraging male involvement in the campus' movement against sexual violence, and next week, 10 male student leaders will be selected to lead this cause. STAAR is a student organization committed to increasing awareness of sexual violence on campus through peer education. STAAR hopes its"Real Men of Penn" campaign will raise awareness on campus and reemphasize the fact that men and women must collaborate against sexual assault, according to College freshman Jodi Gold, a STAAR peer educator. Traditionally, she explained, sexual violence has been considered purely a woman's issue. But Gold said sexual violence is just as much of a male problem as it is a female problem. Men perpetrate 98 percent of all rapes and they are victims of 10 percent of rapes, she added. STAAR feels that it is not sufficient for men to merely abstain from sexually violent behavior, according to College senior Zachary Liff, another peer educator. "Real men" should immerse themselves in the cause. Peer educators like Gold and Liff have presented their challenge to the University community. "We live in a society that has rigid notions of what 'real men' and 'real women' should be," they wrote in an article in the Almanac last month. "Masculinity is often associated with violence, sexual entitlement and conquest. "This spring, STAAR is challenging men across the campus to redefine for themselves the characteristics of 'real men' and the role they can play in ending violence in our communities," they stated. Liff said he hopes the campaign will prove that rape is a mainstream man's issue. The 10 selected "Real Men of Penn" will be featured on a poster -- accompanied by men's proposed solutions to the community's sexual violence. These "real men" will also be honored in a ceremony, aimed at acknowledging their efforts in addition to commemorating the history of the movement against sexual violence at the University. The event is tentatively scheduled for April 20. "Real men" candidates will be judged on the basis of the quality of their solutions, not on the number of activities they have previously participated in. Applications for the "Real Men of Penn" campaign are due Friday. All undergraduate and graduate men are encouraged to apply.