DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS
MONTH BEGINS OCTOBER 1:
"A departure from principle in one instance becomes a precedent
for a second;
that second for a third; and so on, till the bulk of the society
is reduced
to be mere automatons of misery, to have no sensibilities left but
for sin and suffering."
-Thomas Jefferson, founder, University of
Virginia
Dear Friends,
You know me, and
you know I don’t send chain or junk emails, you know I don’t
discuss matters of a serious nature very often, and you know I
hate to ask for favors. That being said, the message you are now
reading is not a chain letter, it’s not a joke, and it’s not
junk. It’s real. I ask that you spend a few minutes of your time
with it. When you are done, I hope that you feel compelled to act
on what you have read.
At the
University of Virginia, students can be expelled for Honor Code
violations – like cheating. But, at UVA (and unfortunately at far
too many other colleges and universities across the nation),
sexual assault is not considered a violation of the Code. At UVA,
no student found guilty of
sexual assault during the last 5 years has been expelled or even
suspended. These
predators walk the campus freely, while their victims struggle to
recover and move forward.
I ask that you
visit
www.uvavictimsofrape.com . On it, you’ll find a story of one
young woman who was an enthusiastic University of Virginia
student, pulling A’s in her classes, popular in her sorority.
Today, she is struggling to find a reason why someone would
sexually assault her and dehumanize her so. Today, she is a
number, just one of the “1 in 4 women” statisticians say will be
raped. Instead of thinking about enjoying Spring Break, she and
her family are fighting to understand how to go about fixing a
broken soul.
Her mom has
built
www.uvavictimsofrape.com to support her daughter, to bring to
light the archaic policies at the University of Virginia (and
other schools like it), and to help others avoid the nightmare
that has become their family reality.
www.uvavictimsofrape.com includes information from others who
have also experienced the lack of concern evidenced by University
officials.
The initial goal
of the campaign is to pressure the administrators of the
University of Virginia to face the issues, and effect change to
the Honor Code policy. UVA MUST include sexual assault as a part
of its Honor Code violations. So must all other colleges and
universities. Check where your daughter, your friend, your family
member goes to school. Are they safe? Will their school care if
they are violated? Or, will their assailant walk freely, free to
attack others? The ultimate goal of this campaign is to force the
issue -- human life and safety needs to be at the front of each
institution’s mission.
While I’m asking
for favors, if you can, please send an email to the school.
You’ll find a suggested email and links on the site. If you
would, please share this message with others, and encourage them
to visit
www.uvavictimsofrape.com, act on it, and share the message.
It is
important that the media and the public knows this. If you, or
someone you are acquainted with, knows people in the media, in
government, in college, please send this to them. Thank
You for any help you can provide.
