According to the White House, one in five women will be sexually assaulted while in college, many of them during their first year by someone they don’t know. To stave this epidemic, the Obama administration has launched a new initiative entitled “It’s On Us.” A senior administration official told The Washington Post that the goal of the initiative is to help Americans realize that sexual assault is a cultural problem in which we all participate.
The Post also reports that the Justice Department Office on Violence Against Women will give “more than $6 million in grants to 18 colleges to develop comprehensive campus sexual assault prevention and response programs.”
Hundreds of student leaders have signed on to participate in the campaign, in addition to celebrities such as Cleveland Cavaliers player Kevin Love. Organizations like NCAA, Viacom, and Tumblr have also agreed to advertise the campaign online and in other venues.
Get involved by taking the initiative’s pledge to help keep women and men safe from sexual assault at ItsOnUs.org and sharing your commitment with friends on Facebook and Twitter.