To the Editor,
Regarding the Wednesday, September 19th BI story “Number of sexual assaults on campus continues to rise,” I am disappointed that the Branding Iron continues to engage in inflammatory and inaccurate reporting regarding sexual assault on campus. Despite the headline, there is no evidence that the number of sexual assaults on campus is changing; rather it is the number of reports that is increasing, which is a positive step in addressing sexual assault on campus and connecting survivors to resources.
It is additionally concerning that an image of an emergency “blue light” was used to illustrate this article. Blue lights would not be an option in the vast majority of sexual assaults, which occur in familiar locations (often campus or private residences) and are perpetrated by familiar people (friends, classmates, acquaintances). The implication that sexual assault survivors should use blue lights to “immediately reach police” is dismissive of the majority of experiences of assault, and ignorant of the many reasons that survivors may choose not to report to police.
At best, misrepresenting sexual assault can lead to a culture of victim blaming. Worse, it creates a chilling effect, where survivors do not feel as if they can report an incident or seek resources. While I appreciate that the BI considers sexual assault an issue that needs coverage, if the BI cannot report the issue responsibly, then they should discontinue sexual assault reporting until the BI staff is trained on how to cover sexual assault in a responsible and ethical way.
Megan Selheim
Stop Violence Program Coordinator
Ed. Note – BI issued the following correction on Sept. 21: The headline “Number of sexual assaults on campus continues to rise” misrepresented the statistic being reported; it should have read “Number of sexual assaults reported on campus continues to rise.”
