LGBTQA

In April my college's LGBTQA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and allies.) organization will be doing a number of activities promoting and educating people about the LGBTQA world.
The reason they are doing it in April instead of June is because we are not in school in June. I think that it is a good decision to allow this organization to do it in April instead.
It shows that the school backs their rights as individuals. That is what all schools should do. Back the rights   of the students and teachers who work and go there.
Education is the way people can gain tolerance and understanding of people different then themselves.
This may sound like I am harping or advocating for gay rights. I am not. I am stating that I think it is a school's responsibility to educate and accept all of their students. Why bother with having schools that do not educate?
Now no matter how schools are run, they will never be able to please everyone. That being said they should accept everyone. No one should tell someone who deserves what should be a safe place for people and who does not.
Education is about rights. The right to be educated. The right to safety while being educated. The right to be ask questions. The right to receive answers. Most importantly education holds the right to help people become who they want to be.
Education is the foundation of rights, with out it we would all be screwed.  

Confidence

This is my third post I promised. This one is going to be all about confidence.

I think that rights movements happen when they happen becasue of timing, but I also think that it takes the confidence of many to create that movenment.

Confidence in believing what they are doing is the right thing, confidence in their own abilities to help their cause (s), confidence in others abilities, confidence in small and large victories, and confidence in making sure that when they are gone the change will continue to thrive.

Confidence isn't easy. I believe people are born with confidence, but that there are people who try to tear it out of others to make themsleves happier.

It doesn't work, the people aren't happier and there is less confidence in the world making change happen at an even slower rate.

This needs to stop. We need to teach children to have confidence in what they do no matter what. Yes, movements falter, yes it takes forever to grant people rights, but that doesn't mean confidence should falter.

People need to figure out ways to keep their confidence alive. Whether it's cooking, sports, academia, humor, counseling, or speech giving, all people have something they are confident they are amazing at. 

They just need to learn that they don't just have one, they have many. It isn't that no one can make you feel inferior with out your permission, it is that no one can make you feel inferior when you know exactly who you are and accept it.

I'm not saying this is an easy thing to want or do, but it is a necessary step people need to take.
It is something that can no longer be ignored or put off for another day. 

Rights movements need confidence, people listen to confidence. Small or big all rights movements can use a little more confidence.   

Campus Safety

Hi, as I stated in my last post, the freshman lock-in gave me a lot of inspiration of things to talk about in my blog.

This blog post is going to be a short one. I think a huge part of women's rights is women learning and taking their right to protect themselves.

I wrote an article on campus safety. I think that it is a good refresher of the things women need to be aware of. Some of the information applies only to SC, but I think that most of the information in the article can be applied everywhere.

Crimes often happen at night, when people are unable to see well and consequently unable to protect themselves from the dangers that lurk in the dark.

Lighting is a key factor in that fear. When campuses have adequate lighting, students, faculty, staff and administration feel safer on campus at night.

Sara Weinert, vice-president of communications, said “Each light on campus does have a number labeling it.” This makes it easy for students to call maintenance or to e-mail maintenance at jeff.gile@sckans.edu to inform them of the broken light, helping to keep the campus safer.

The sidewalk and stairs between Wallingford and the cafeteria, the sidewalk between Darbeth and the 77 steps, the sidewalk between Wroten Hall and Darbeth, Wallingford’s parking lot, and Kings drive are a few places on campus that have inadequate lighting. Calling security for an escort is always an option for students who need to travel around campus at night.

“Lighting has really improved on campus. It really is a safe campus, but in the dark it doesn’t feel like it,” said Weinert.

Combining safety tips with understanding who to call when a crime happens help keep college campuses safe.

Every Southwestern College student should know these numbers and have them programmed into their cell phones. These numbers are:

·         Campus security: (620) 229-0012

·         Winfield Police: (620) 221-5555 or 911

·         Maintenance: (620) 229-6321

Knowing numbers is not enough. Students should also keep these safety tips in mind.

 “Students should always, always trust their instinct,” said Dan Falk, dean of students.

·         Look like you have a purpose.

·         Carry your keys in hand.

·         Constantly be aware of the area around you.

·         Always lock your car door and dorm room door.

Carrie Lane, associate professor of psychology has a PhD in experimental psychology with an emphasis on social psychology. She taught through graduate school at the University of Texas at Arlington and for the past six years at Florida State University as an assistant professor.

Lane said “Never be on your cell phone. A lot of people think that this makes them appear busy and that will deter any perpetrator from targeting them. That is not the case. It makes them appear more susceptible because they seem distracted.”

“Don’t wear hair in a ponytail. If you do it makes it easier for people to grab and use against you,” said Lane.

“Only 20 percent of rapes are stranger rapes,” said Lane. The other 80 percent of rapes are committed by someone the victim knows.     

Falk said, “A good friend doesn’t let a friend go home with the creepy guy or up the stairs with the creepy guy. Your friend may be mad at you for it, but in the end, as a friend you are doing the right thing.”

Safety procedures are only the first step students need to take to keep themselves empowered and safe on campus. The next step is to report crimes or safety hazards to the appropriate officials.

“Always call 911 if it is a life threatening emergency,” said Weinert.

For any type of situation it is recommended that students call the police or 911 first and take the necessary steps for reporting the crime from there.

Falk said, “It is always encouraged for student to fill out a police report.”

If the crime involves another student’s conduct, Southwestern College investigates the crime differently than the police do. “If student conduct is an issue, there is an investigative process done by Student Life. The student may not go to jail, but they may get kicked out of college,” said Falk.

The college will keep students informed about the progress of any criminal investigation taking place by Student Life in one of two ways.

“If it is not a sexual assault, we keep students updated. If it is, we constantly keep them informed. If a student is raped by another student, on or off campus, we keep them informed to give back a sense of power to the victim. It becomes school versus the perpetrator not victim versus the perpetrator,” said Falk.  

Every person has the right to empower themselves through accurate information. This information is freely given if people know what it is and where to look for it.

The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act is a federal law requiring all college and universities across the United States to disclose information about crime on and around their campuses.

This act is in place to protect students by giving them easy access to crime reports that have been filed so that students can better prepare themselves for living on their own during college.

Southwestern College has a link on their website to review the crime reports that were filed in 2011. These reports are updated Oct. 1 of every year. The link to view this information is http://www.sckans.edu/file/513.     

To view the entire Jeanne Clery Act people may visit the website http://www.securityoncampus.org/summary-jeanne-clery-act.

Locked in

Last night I had the pleasure of being part of Southwestern's freshamn girls lock-in. There were many guest speakers and activities to help young women broach touchy and often messy subjects.

The speakers talked about finances, relationships, confidence, sex and ways to build yourself up.

My experience was very positive. I felt my spirit being lifted and was inspired by everyone there.
I was so inspired that my next two blog posts will be based on thoughts that came to my mind during the lock-in.

I thought that the lock in was a great way to bring women's issues to the mind of the younger generation of women going into college life.

The different stations used personal stories of the speakers to connect to the freshman women. I thought that was a brillant thing ot do. Facts and data are great for many things but they don't often connect with people and get them to open up and see themsleves in a positive light.

Getting girls, young women, and women to celebrate everything that makes them beautiful and unique is an up hill battle. I think that this lock-in was a great step toward winning that battle.

I certainly hope that Southwestern decides to impliment this idea as a regular activity for both freshman women and all female students.