As festivals come and go, the news constantly talks about the dangers of these events resulting in overdoses and hundreds of arrests, but buried beneath all of that are cases of rape or sexual assault that aren’t given the same amount of attention.
After I read other new stories about similar incidences taking place at festivals like Stagecoach and Electric Zoo, two things became apparent to me. One, although women seems to wear little amount of clothing to these events, there was no evidence stating that the way these women were dressed caused this. Two, the bigger problem was other factors such as alcohol, drugs or lack of security.
“People can restrain themselves and people can express themselves however they want,” said Ariana Purtee, 21-year-old communications major. “Guys can wear less clothing, so why not girls.”
Moorpark College’s RAINN/NO MORE (Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network) club founder and president, Crystal Cassese believes that people have the right to express themselves freely at these events, so that doesn’t give anyone the right or justification to take advantage of them.
“Simply, no means no, an absence of no does not mean yes,” said Cassese through an e-mail. “The type of clothing a woman wears, no matter how suggestive, is not an implied yes; body language is not an implied yes either. Only a verbal yes means yes, and only when both people are conscious and not under the influence of drugs or alcohol.”
I don’t think anyone should have to feel like they’re taking a risk or feel like they can’t wear whatever they want just because someone doesn’t respect their personal space. The whole concept of “yes means yes” is being adopted at schools across the country and it shouldn’t stop here, it should apply everywhere.
According to the RAINN website, 32 out 100 cases of rape are reported, but only 2 out of 100 will actually serve time for it. Because these numbers are so small, this is something that really needs attention and prevention effort. Not only from the festival organizers, but also attendees to protect each other from predators.
Cassese stresses the necessity of having a strong system of education and support for victims to come forward to make a difference and make festivals a safer place to be.
“We need to encourage the open communication about these issues and encourage survivors to speak up and know that they are NEVER to blame, and that they are not alone,” said Cassese.
Taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture, what happened to these individuals brings to light that this has never been about how women dress at these events, but more of an unfortunate result when there’s little security around or when drugs or alcohol become involved.
There shouldn’t be restrictions on what women wear at festivals because the amount of clothing doesn’t matter. Spreading awareness should be more important because, the bottom line is, sexual assault or rape can happen to anyone.
RAINN and NO MORE are national non-profit organizations dedicated to ending sexual assault and domestic violence. The club is new to Moorpark this semester and is here to raise awareness and support for survivors. Club meetings are held Wednesdays from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. in the Fountain Hall.
The health center has several services and practitioners available as well. Call (805) 378-1455 to make a free appointment.
