Rape is ‘not inevitable,’ educator says
Concordia University’s Sexual Assault Resource Centre has invited Julie Lalonde, an awardwinning educator on sexual violence, to speak on campus Wednesday about the role bystanders can play in preventing sexual assault. Lalonde made headlines last spring when she went public about the sexual harassment and hostility she endured at the Royal Military College in Kingston, Ont. when she gave a similar presentation there in 2014. She is the founder of the Draw The Line campaign, which challenges common myths about sexual violence and equips bystanders with information on how to intervene safely and effectively. She also founded the Ottawa chapter of Hollaback! which is an international movement against sexual harassment on the street. This interview has been condensed.
Q What do you hope to accomplish in your campus talks on bystander intervention?
A The goal is to get participants to understand the complexity of sexual violence by looking at what it is and why, socially and culturally, we fail to intervene. I use real-life scenarios to work through the tangibles of what it means to intervene. Bystander intervention sometimes just means checking in with a person who has been targeted and just asking “Are you OK?” Sometimes it’s seeing someone who seems drunk being dragged away from the group and making an excuse to get her out of that situation.
Q Why would a student or anyone else want to attend one of these presentations?
A When you leave this presentation, I want you to be a person that other people will want to party with. If you are a social creature, you love to go to parties or host events, or just have an active social life, you should come ... You will learn how to have people’s backs.
Q You have been open about your own experience as a domestic violence survivor. How has that informed your work?
A I was quite lucky. I believe that in a way my background in feminism saved my life. I came from a home where I was taught that I deserve better, that I deserve to be helped if I’m in trouble. So when I went to the police to get help and they weren’t very helpful, I wasn’t devastated by it. But it made me realize something. I was a privileged, educated, white woman in a heterosexual relationship with documented evidence. The system is definitely broken if someone like me can’t get support.
Q How have you seen the conversation around sexual violence on campus change over the years?
A Well in 2007, nobody was talking about sexual assault on campus as a problem. Each case was seen as an unusual event. Now, every September we are seeing the media cover stories about rape culture, whether it’s rape chants during orientation or prevention programs. People used to see every event in isolation. Now we are putting all these events — events at the University of Ottawa, Dalhousie, the Jian Ghomeshi story, the events on Parliament Hill, the military ... It has become all too obvious that all of these incidents are connected ... that it is a cultural issue.
Q Are campus decision-makers getting the message that rape culture is a widespread problem?
A Yes, I think so. In the past, when there was an incident, people wondered if that specific campus had issues. Now there is a general recognition that ... it is everywhere. It used to be career suicide for a university president to say that his campus was struggling with sexual violence issues. But in the last couple of years, it is the opposite ... Parents are saying “I feel safer sending my daughter to a place where there are policies and services” dealing with sexual violence.
Q What do you think about making consent and sexual violence education mandatory for university students?
A If it is not mandatory, you do end up mostly preaching to the choir. I see nothing wrong with making it mandatory, or giving students some credits or some other incentive to attend ... First-year university students are used to being told what they need to do to get their education. It is not a stretch to be told, “In order to get your degree, you will need a student card, you need to pay your tuition, and you need to attend orientation.
Q Do you believe that bystander intervention can actually stop sexual assault?
A Rape is not inevitable. I have been told, “If you think you can prevent sexual assault you are super naive.” I don’t think so. If we choose to hold perpetrators responsible and if we intervene early, and if we speak up and say “We don’t tolerate this,” it can be drastically reduced.
Lalonde will be speaking in room H-767 of the Henry F. Hall Building at Concordia’s downtown campus on Wednesday, Nov. 4 from 5 to 7 p.m.
Admission is free and this event is open to the public.