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The first six weeks of college, commonly known as the red zone, is the time of year when folks are most at risk for sexual assault and other forms of sexual harm. How can you as a friend or peer prevent harm? We urge you to be an active bystander by practicing these five intervention strategies. Note that these are non-linear— feel free to use them as you see fit. Direct: Assess your safety first and respond directly to the harassment. Some things to say are: "That's inappropriate," "Leave them alone," "Please stop." Distract: Start a conversation with the person being harmed or find another way to draw attention from them. Some things to say are: "Hey, I've been meaning to talk to you!" "Excuse me, could you tell me where the library is?" Delegate: Get help from someone else— an authority figure, a peer, a group of friends. Some things to say are: "Can you help me get them out of the situation?" "Can you call someone else for help?" Delay: After the incident is over, check in with the person who was harmed. Some things to say are: "How can I best support you?" "Do you want me to walk with you?" Document: It can be helpful to take notes about or record an incident of harm. But assess the situation. Is anyone helping the person being harassed? If not, use another of the 5Ds. Recording someone’s experience of harm without ensuring they’re already receiving help can just create further trauma for them. If someone else is already helping out: assess your own safety, and if you are safe, begin documenting. ALWAYS ask the person who was harassed what they want to do with your recording and/or notes. NEVER post it online or use it without their permission. Visit https://righttobe.org/guides/bystander-intervention-training/ to learn more. Please take care of yourself and our community! -
📣📣PVP is hiring temporary student workers!✨ PVP is seeking students passionate about preventing interpersonal violence to facilitate Consent Circles during NSO in August. This position is a temporary student worker position for up to 16 hours of work. Folks must be available all day on Thursday, August 24th and Friday, August 25th. Becoming a Consent Circles Facilitator is a great way to get involved with violence prevention efforts and provide support to incoming first-year students, while earning $15/hour. This position is open to both work-study and non-work study students and early move-in may be available! Apply by Friday, July 7 at on Workday at tinyurl.com/CCfacilitator2023 or by following the numbered directions in the comments. ⬇️ Email Julie Millisky, PVP Associate Director, at julmill@upenn.edu with any questions. 📧 -
Phew, what a month! As sexual violence prevention advocates, it’s sometimes hard not to get discouraged by the amount of work ahead of us to truly eradicate interpersonal violence. And yet, as we wrap up #30daysofSAAM, I cannot help but reflect on the incredible advocacy, creativity and energy that our community (that includes you!) has put in to making this year’s SAAM a meaningful step forward in raising awareness and making change. Yes, we still have a long way to go, but we’ve come so far together and I am so proud to be in the work with all of you. -- Elise -
👖 Today the PVP staff honors Denim Day, a global campaign to raise awareness about sexual assault and show solidarity with survivors. 👖 The campaign was originally triggered by a ruling by the Italian Supreme Court where a sexual assault conviction was overturned. In a statement by the Chief Judge, he argued, “because the victim wore very, very tight jeans, she had to help him remove them, and by removing the jeans it was no longer rape but consensual sex.” 👖 The following day, the women in the Italian Parliament came to work wearing jeans in solidarity with the victim. Peace Over Violence developed the Denim Day campaign in response to this case and the activism surrounding it. Since then, wearing jeans on Denim Day has become a symbol of protest against erroneous and destructive attitudes about sexual assault. 👖You can visit PeaceOverViolence.org for more information. #Day26 of #30DaysofSAAM @nsvrc -
We couldn’t do all the work we do during Sexual Assault Awareness Month without our amazing Penn Anti-Violence Educators (PAVE)! Their energy, commitment and advocacy in delivering peer-to-peer education about consent and bystander intervention is a huge part of the change we’re trying to make for our campus community. This past week, we presented our PAVE graduating seniors with teal graduation cords to recognize their culture changing hard-work and we celebrate them for today’s #30daysofSAAM!
Penn Violence Prevention (PVP) engages the Penn community in the prevention of sexual violence, relationship violence, stalking, and sexual harassment on campus. We foster collaborative relationships across campus to ensure a survivor-centered, multi-faceted approach to support services and primary prevention. Through collective community action, we are committed to ending interpersonal violence by addressing gender inequity, social injustice, and oppression through outreach and education.
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
PVP will host events through out the month. Check our calendar for upcoming programming.
“It Ends With Me: Being an Active Bystander”
Request the Penn Anti-Violence Educators (PAVE) training presentation for your graduate or undergraduate student group.
Sign up for PVP's newsletter!
Penn Violence Prevention's newsletter is sent via email once a month to members of the Penn community. Our newsletter highlights PVP educational opportunities, including our Supporting Survivors and Anti Violence Advocates training dates, as well as events around campus that are related to the work we do!
