TORONTO – A school in Virginia is gathering together to show their support to victims of sexual assault through an online photo aimed at refusing to perpetuate a rape culture.
Since launching in March, the William & Mary Stands with Survivors Facebook page has received almost 150 photo submissions from students, faculty members and administrators at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
Participants pose with signs reading, “I stand with survivors because…” and share their reasons for why he or she supports victims of sexual assault.
“Not everyone who supports survivors’ talks about it all the time,” said the project’s founder Hannah Boes. “I wanted to give our silent majority a voice. More importantly, I hoped that the visibility of the page and its messages would give survivors a chance to see the evidence of the support all around them; perhaps even in the strangers they pass on their way to class.”
Boes said the messages come in a very pure form of love and support and believes that the project shows that work of sexual assault prevention and survivor advocacy is a group effort.
“It is a cultural change, and I am proud to see my school representing part of that movement,” said Boes. “The project has meant a lot to survivors and other students. I have been really happy to hear that it is doing exactly what it was supposed to—giving people a chance to see for themselves that they are not alone.”
The College of William and Mary (W&M) has made national headlines in the United States in recent years over high profile cases of sexual assault on campus. Earlier this month, a former W&M football player accused of sexual assault was found not guilty of nine charges connected to the alleged rape of an 18-year-old athlete during a party. In 2001, then freshman student Samantha Collins said she was raped by a male student when she became ill drinking at a fraternity party and her friends took her upstairs to recover.
A school disciplinary committee ultimately found the suspect responsible for the sexual assault and he was dismissed months later.
“I spent so much time whispering, and now it’s time to scream,” Collins said in an interview in October 2002.
READ MORE: Powerful photography series ‘Project Unbreakable’ sheds light on sexual violence
Earlier this year, an online photo essay of survivors holding up posters with a quote from their attackers also gained momentum as it shed light on rape and sexual violence. The series, Project Unbreakable, displayed phrases that both men and women said were told to them by their attacker before, during or after their assault.
Global News received permission to republish the photos in this story. Photo credit: William & Mary Stands with Survivors Facebook
Comments