Brown and White Vol. 127 no. 7

              See BATHROOMS Page 4
The Brown and White
Vol. 127 No. 7
Friday, September 26, 2014
‘All the Lehigh News First’
More than 90 percent of victims don’t report their sexual assault to the police.
This is the fact that Break the Silence members Samantha Dipaolo, ’16, and Katie Jalboot, ’17, revealed to their audience at the start of this year’s Take Back the Night, which was held on Monday. The event, held every year on Lehigh’s campus and across the country, consists of a silent march and a speak out, during which survivors of sexual assault can share their stories.
The event is distinct in that it is set up to be a safe space for survivors to share their experi­ences without the repercussions and criticism that may follow a public announcement. Brooke DiSipio, the director of the Office of Gender Violence Education and Support, said she and BTS work closely with Lehigh’s general counsel and the campus police to ensure the event’s environment is as confidential and safe as pos­sible.
“Outside of events like Take Back the Night, the only confi­dential space on campus is the counseling center,” DiSipio said. “All other faculty and staff are mandated reporters.”
But during Take Back the Night, DiSipio explained that the university is required to act only if a speaker reveals something that would indicate a threat to the larger campus community.
Gender-neutral bathrooms have made their debut on Lehigh’s campus as part of the construction and building update on Williams Hall.
The overall initiative is to have gender-neutral bathrooms across campus and for them to be a staple in all new build­ings. Lehigh currently has some gender-inclusive restrooms on campus, including ones on the fourth floor of the University Center and the second floor of Linderman Library, but the hope
Otherwise, survivors are invited to speak freely about their expe­riences and receive the support of the community gathered at the event.
This opportunity for a survivor to speak out is instrumental for the healing process.
“We know that for survivors of sexual assault and gender vio­lence specifically, there is this culture of silence,” DiSipio said. “We know that literally the num­ber one thing that determines whether someone transfers from victim to survivor is if the peo­ple they tell believe and support them. So being able to tell peo­ple and have 200 people support you…you can’t replicate that type of healing and experience.”
BTS member Claire Hawley, ’15, shared her story for the first time at last year’s Take Back the Night and said the experience was transformative.
“For me, it was just finally telling my story after 10 years of being told that it didn’t happen to me, and just being able to say to everyone that it did happen and I’m not a liar,” she said. “And just coming to terms with that person­ally was a huge thing for me in recovering.”
Allison Gulati, the associate dean and director of strategic ini­tiatives, said speaking out can be an empowering experience for a survivor.
“Every time they tell their story from a place of strength, where they own that story and they have the opportunity to share it on their terms, it helps them more fully come to terms with what has happened and to assure them­selves that they have the resourc­es and the ability to get through it,” she said.
DiSipio echoed Gulati’s senti­ments and stressed the signifi­cance of the event as “one of the few times that survivors can come together and feel supported and feel believed and feel listened to.”
And for Dipaolo, the creation of that safe space speaks to the power of the event, particularly on Lehigh’s campus.
“I think it’s rare, especially in the community at Lehigh,” she said. “There are a lot of zones that people don’t feel safe in, and this is just one of them that when people are in it, they know they’re safe. They know that the frat boy sitting next to you…if he’s sitting here, he’s sitting here for a rea­By
ABBY SMITH
Editor in Chief
Andrew Garrison, ’14/B&W Staff
Students participating in Take Back the Night hike up the hill from the flagpole on the UC Front Lawn to Sayre Village.
‘Taking Back The Night’
Students gather, march to end gender violence
is to make them more prevalent on campus.
“The initiative to place more gender-neutral bathrooms is necessary as our student body continues to work towards a more inclusive environment,” said Abby Farrell, ‘15, an ath­lete ally.
Gender-neutral bathrooms are public restrooms that anybody can use regardless of gender identity or expression. They can come in the form of sin­gle-occupant restrooms with a lock on the door or multi-stalled restrooms, in which people of all genders can share the facilities.
Lehigh will be converting sin­gle bathrooms, which will affect over 50 bathrooms all over cam­pus.
Lehigh is not the first school to make this step towards inclu­sivity. A rapidly growing num­ber of colleges and universities across the country are creat­ing gender-neutral bathrooms. According to the Huffington Post, there are over 150 schools across the U.S. that have gen­der-neutral bathrooms, includ­ing New York University, as well as Tufts, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford andINSIDE | Dance Marathon raises money for children’s hospitals.
See Page 5
Gender-neutral bathrooms promote inclusivity
By ALI KAMINETSKY
B&W Staff
See NIGHT Page 4