Rape Awareness Week at OU Begins Oct. 7

The OU Gender + Equality Center will host several events during Rape Awareness Week Oct. 7-11 with a poetry night, art show and sexual awareness training.

Open Mic Poetry + Prose starts at 7 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 7 at Second Wind Coffeehouse, 564 Buchanan Ave., in Norman, and is free and open to the public. 

A survivor art installation titled “What Were You Wearing” will be on display on the University’s South Oval on Tuesday, Oct. 8. The installation includes clothing worn at the time of the victim’s assault. 

On Tuesday, Our Voice training is open to OU students, faculty and staff. Our Voice is an active bystander intervention training, helping attendees to use their influence, popularity and credibility to help prevent and end sexual misconduct on campus. 

Rape Awareness Week concludes on Wednesday with the annual Take Back the Night event at 7 p.m. in the Unity Garden, South Oval. Survivors will share their stories, and a candlelight vigil and march will be held. 

According to the Bureau of Justice, 734,630 people reported being raped or sexually assaulted in 2018 – approximately three in 1,000. They estimate that 43% of violent victimizations are reported to the authorities. This week is an opportunity for the OU family to come together and stand up to sexual violence. 

For more information, contact the OU Gender+Equality Office at (405) 325-4929 or gec@ou.edu. 

Article Published: Wednesday, October 9, 2019