
Pledge to End Sexual Assault With ItsOnUs.org
May 5, 2015
It started out the way you would expect a sexual assault public service announcement (PSA) to start: people were at a party, a beautiful girl was stumbling on her way out. From this point, based on all of the other sexual assault PSAs I have seen, I expected the guy to step in at any minute and take advantage of the girl. He did, just like I thought. But something was different this time.
It is a campaign that encourages people to no longer be bystanders and intervene when they feel a situation might end in rape or sexual assault.
When the camera moved past the guy and the girl and focused on the person sitting on the couch, it’s then that the narrator said that what you’re watching is not what you thought it was. This PSA is not simply about sexual assault; it is about being someone who stops sexual assault.
The It’s On Us campaign is not your usual sexual assault campaign that simply says sexual assault is a terrible thing. It is a campaign that encourages people to no longer be bystanders and intervene when they feel a situation might end in rape or sexual assault.
On the website, ItsOnUs.org, people can take the pledge to step in if they feel as though a situation they are witnessing might end in rape or sexual assault. By taking the pledge, you can join other teens who have vowed to take a stand against sexual assault and no longer stand idly by. One of the greatest things I think ItsOnUs.org offers is a list of tips on how to act on the pledge.
We often talk about intervening as a bystander when it comes to bullying, but seldom when it comes to sexual assault. How do you intervene? What can you actually do? ItsOnUs.org has specific tools you can use to intervene. Go to ItsOnUs.org to learn more and sign the pledge.
Posted In: Abuse & Violence
Tags: advocacy | rape | sexual assault | abuse & violence | bystander