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Signatures
Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
Dear Declaration,
Recent stories about sexual assault reports (or lack thereof) by university students in local
papers elicited no surprise to those of us who know that these statistics are meaningless.
No one understands this irony better than I, or, for that matter, the U.Va. Police. This is a
perpetual source of frustration for us all.
The issue raises two important questions:
1) Why does U.Va. have internal hearings for a crime such as rape, and how can the
administration "mediate" a felony?
The U.S. Department of Education requires all colleges and universtites to have sexual
assualt procedures. For two years, a group of students, administrators and faculty,
including myself, members of the UJC, and the University Committee on Sexual Assault
and Judicial review (UCSAJR), have worked to make our procedures less legalistic and
friendlier to survivors without infringing on the rights of the accused. The changes have
not yet been approved, but we are optimistic that they will be. However, with so few
survivors reporting, skeptics are unconvinced that we should be paying so much attention
to this issue. Ironically, while this silence is understandable, it also hurts.
Mediation is controversial, indeed. Even among administrators, there is no consensus as to
what is appropriate. Some students choose this option over doing nothing at all. A hearing
and a mediation are two separate processes -- you may choose one or the other, but not
both.
2) Why don't University of Virginia students report their assaults?
The police cannot record assaults they know nothing about. Nor can I, or SARA (calls by
students to the hotline have gone down in the past year). Under-reporting is endemic
everywhere. But U.Va. students under-report to a greater extent than their peers at other
Virginia schools. Both the SAE staff, SAFE activists and resident staff have worked to
educate students, but obviously we must do more.
Anonymous, Third Party Reports are included in the Uniform Crime Report and are
published alongside "official" reports. It doesn't matter how long ago the assault occured;
if you experienced rape, attempted rape, forced oral or anal sodomy, were grabbed under
or over your clothing and you don't want to file an official complaint with the police, call
me at 982-2774 or email me at cnk2r@virginia.edu. and I will take enough information
over the phone to file a Third Party Report, which does not identify you or the assailant(s),
and then I'll forward it to the U.Va. Police Department. You don't even have to identify
yourself.
There is no statute of limitations on a felony in Virginia, and there is also the very viable
option of filing a civil suit against your assailant. If you were assaulted no more than one
year ago by another student who has not yet graduated, you can still file for a hearing
before the UCSAJR. I can give you information about how these options work. SARA and
the Sexual Assault Education Office are also starting a group for survivors who wish to
explore these options with supportive allies. Call 982-2251 for information.
Let's keep asking ourselves how we can create a climate that helps sexual assault survivors
speak out effectively and get the help they need. The SARA hotline (977-7273) is available
24 hours-a-day, as are their advocates. Free counseling is available at the Women's Center,
Counseling & Psychological Services, and SARA. And I will provide unconditional
support and assistance for you as you make decisions for yourself.
The great African-American, feminist, lesbian poet Audre Lorde said, "Your silence will
not protect you." If you are ready to break your silence, we will stand with you.
Claire N. Kaplan
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