Goucher Men's Lacrosse To Wear Teal Ribbon To Raise Awareness For Sexual Assault Awareness Month During Game Against Drew On Saturday

BALTIMORE, Md. – The Goucher College men's lacrosse team will help raise awareness for Sexual Assault Awareness Month during its season finale against Drew University on Saturday.

The Gophers will wear a teal ribbon on its jersey as a symbol of the awareness campaign. In additions, on the walkway on the hill behind Beldon Field, peer educators will be stationed to educate fans on sexual assault and healthy masculinity awareness. 

About Sexual Assault Awareness Month
In an effort to further coordinate awareness and prevention efforts, in 2000, the newly launched National Sexual Violence Resource Center and the Resource Sharing Project polled sexual violence coalitions. They asked organizations about their preferred color, symbol, and month for sexual assault awareness activities. The results showed that those in the movement preferred a teal ribbon as a symbol for sexual assault awareness, and Sexual Assault Awareness Month as we know it was born.

Sexual assault is a serious and widespread problem. Nearly one in five women in the United States have experienced rape or attempted rape at some time in their lives, and one in 67 American men have experienced rape or attempted rape.

Sexual Assault Awareness Month is about more than awareness — the ultimate goal is prevention. Since consent is a clear, concrete example of what it takes to end sexual harassment, abuse, and assault, it only made sense that this year's theme center on empowering all of us to put consent into practice.

The goal of the campaign is to empower everyone to put consent into practice. As individuals share the message of the campaign throughout their communities and online, they'll demonstrate the importance of consent and set an example for their partners, friends, and loved ones.

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When we talk about prevention, we mean stopping sexual violence before it even has a chance to happen. This means changing the social norms that allow it to exist in the first place, from individual attitudes, values, and behaviors to laws, institutions, and widespread social norms.

Prevention is everyone's responsibility: All of us can create and promote safe environments. We can intervene to stop concerning behavior; promote and model healthy attitudes and relationships; and believe survivors and assist them in finding resources.