On behalf of the Penn Consortium of Undergraduate Women, we are writing, first, to thank you for your ongoing support in our efforts to raise awareness on sexual violence and assault. You mobilized your colleagues and peers by word-of-mouth and student group e-mail lists to produce a petition that, as of Nov. 30, 2009, bears 1,549 signatures. The petition is a manifestation of organic community organizing, and of on- and off-campus, undergraduate, graduate, staff, faculty and community support.
Whether you simply signed the petition, encouraged your colleagues in student groups to sign the petition or engaged your friends in conversation about sexual violence, you made a statement. And you helped PCUW secure the attentions and support of Special Services at the Division of Public Safety, the School of Nursing and local government officials, among other University and Philadelphia offices and affiliates. These figures represent the legal, medical and law enforcement perspectives on the ongoing campaign to establish an additional rape-designated center in the area, and provided PCUW with valuable information.
That knowledge allowed us to reassess and redirect our campaign efforts.
After learning about historical efforts to establish a rape-designated center at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP), and considering the recommendations of the individuals with whom we discussed the campaign over the past few weeks, PCUW has decided to push for a stand-alone rape-designated center in the West Philadelphia area, rather than pursue a center at HUP.
According to information relayed from Special Services, approximately half of individuals who report sexual assault are medically stable and do not require further medical treatment beyond the medical and forensic examinations included in the rape kit.
Because Jefferson Hospital is a trauma center, patients who are medically unstable receive first priority, creating wait times that can last up to several hours for persons who have been sexually assaulted. The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania is also a trauma center; thus, a center located at HUP would face similar problems. A stand-alone center would provide a safe space with Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners and advocates on call, and survivors would no longer have to compete with trauma victims for medical attention.
Immediate changes to the climate at Penn must come from within our community, as student awareness and activism grows. Sexual violence is certainly not a light topic, but it is only when students begin to engage one another that we can begin to make tangible, on-campus change.
Still, this community should not end at Penn’s borders. PCUW plans to reach out to students at neighboring colleges and universities to ensure that all survivors of sexual assault receive every resource the school, city and state has to offer. Furthermore, we hope to form a broad coalition with Philadelphia universities and residential communities to push for the realization of a stand-alone center.
Alongside these long-term efforts, PCUW is currently working to establish a student partnership program with the Philadelphia rape crisis center, Women Organized Against Rape (WOAR). Student volunteers would undergo a 40-hour training that would enable them to serve as crisis counselors, educators and advocates to survivors in the Philadelphia area.
There are a number of ways for students to get involved. Learn about campus groups such as One-in-Four and Abuse and Sexual Assault Prevention (ASAP) and attend their meetings. Take part in the Sexual Violence Prevention Training through the Penn Women’s Center. We are fortunate to have an abundance of resources for survivors of sexual assault at Penn, including Special Services, CAPS and the Women’s Center. But now, let us continue to identify the causes of sexual violence both on- and off-campus and take on active roles to create a culture that does not tolerate violence.
Rosa Cui and Kaneesha Parsard are the chairwoman and vice-chairwoman for University relations, respectively, for PCUW.
