Defining Sexual Consent on College Campuses – A Need for Change

If you ask 100 college students what the definition of sexual consent is, you may get 100 different answers.  Some may tell you that it is the absence of a verbal “no”.  Some may say that they “read between the lines” during vague conversations related to the topic and that if they don’t get a strong “No”, they move forcefully ahead.  And yet others say they interpret body language and nonverbal indicators to make their sexual decisions.  Any way you look at it, sexual consent seems to be very difficult for students to define and can be as confusing as an elaborate game of charades.  There should not be any doubt in the mind of an individual who wishes to engage in sexual activity that the other person does or does not want to have sex.  It’s not a guessing game.  Yet students will tell you they find the definition of sexual consent to be much like finding Bigfoot, it can be elusive and unexplained.

The hugely popular “No means No” campaign tried to clarify things and take the guess work out of consensual sex but still some potential perpetrators dance around the issues in an attempt to justify their forceful (and criminal) actions.

It is sad to think that there are still people who will be victimized by sexual violence due to misconstrued ideas of consent.  Recently, California and New York became the first two states to pass affirmative consent legislation.  “No mean No” is changing to “Yes means Yes”.  This would require a firm “Yes” rather than an absent “no” and it now gives the state the ability to enforce what has only been part of a student handbook in the past. 

A recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Washington Post found that:

•  One in five college women are victims of sexual assault;
•   Sexual assaults on college campuses are both common and life changing;
•  Male victims fear they will not be believed.

The report also stated that more than 50 colleges and universities are facing federal investigations for their handling of sexual abuse allegations, and the Department of Education noted that sexual assaults reported on campus have increased from 3,443 in 2011 to 4,062 in 2012.  Those numbers are reinforced by a similar study conducted in 2014 by Huffington Post where it was found that the students who were found responsible for sexual assaults were expelled in only thirty percent of cases and suspended in only forty-seven percent.  Many of these instances involved student athletes who allegedly continued to have all their privileges and rights intact even after the findings. 

Will the “Yes means Yes” campaign efforts clarify the cause and be the action needed to redefine sexual consent?  While the research is still inconclusive, it seems to definitely take a different view over “No means No”.  It would certainly make it easier for a college administrator or law enforcement officer to identify sexual assault.  The “Yes means Yes” campaign may help eliminate the common erroneous defense away from a perpetrator who claimed that consent was implied because they didn’t receive an emphatic “No”.

Written by Heather S., Education Director