POC Attends The Fearless Conference

PEACE OUTside Campus attended The Fearless Conference hosted by The Do Write Campaign and Joyful Heart Foundation on Friday, September 18, 2015 in NYC.  The event brought together high school and college students, parents, administrators, law makers, likeminded organizations, and movie producers to discuss Sexual Assault Prevention. Presenters included:

• “The Backlog Crisis” - Ilse Knecht, senior Policy and Advocacy Advisor, Joyful Heart Foundation
• “The Call to Men” – Ted Bunch, Co-Founder and Director of A Call to Men
• “The Call to Students” – Josy Jablons and Meghan Racklin, NYU “The Call to Parents” – Charlotte Poth, The Center for Sexual Assault Crisis Counseling and Education
• “The Call to Conversation” – Katie Cappiello and Meg McInerney, SLUT: The Play
• “The Call to Action” – Ileana Jimenez, Student Active For Ending Rape (SAFER), Representative Sarah Merrimen, Jessica Buchanan, The Center for Sexual Assault Crisis Counseling and Education, and Jean Bucaria, NOW-NYC

In addition to the guest speakers and discussion based workshops, there was a screening of The Hunting Ground.   The Oscar-nominated film is an exposé of rape crimes on U.S. college campuses, their institutional cover-ups, and the devastating toll they take on students and their families written and directed by Kirby Dick and produced by Amy Ziering.  Also shown was an introduction to the film India’s Daughter.   Directed by Leslee Udwin, the film is based on the 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old woman who was a physiotherapy student.  There was a brief Q&A with Producer Peggy Cafferty and Director Leslee Udwin following the film. 

Information to check out: 

1. Callisto is designed to provide a more empowering, transparent, and confidential reporting experience for college sexual assault survivors.  Students can fill out an account of an incident online, save the report, and decide if they want to report now or later.  Website:  https://www.projectcallisto.org/
2. Amnesty Policies at colleges/universities – (similar to the Good Samaritan Policy) students cannot be punished for use of illegal drugs/underage drinking/etc while reporting sexual assault.  Check to see if your campus has an Amnesty Policy!
3. Better Sex Talk - http://www.bstcampaign.org/
4. End the Backlog - http://endthebacklog.org/ Information and alerts regarding rape kit backlogs.