{"id":387,"date":"2014-02-07T16:36:04","date_gmt":"2014-02-07T16:36:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paar.net\/?p=387"},"modified":"2022-02-14T09:36:37","modified_gmt":"2022-02-14T14:36:37","slug":"president-obama-announces-new-task-force-to-combat-sexual-violence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paar.net\/president-obama-announces-new-task-force-to-combat-sexual-violence\/","title":{"rendered":"President Obama Announces New Task Force to Combat Sexual Violence"},"content":{"rendered":"

On January 22, 2014, the US government made advances in the fight against sexual violence. President Obama and Vice President Biden spoke to the press about the Administration\u2019s newly drafted memorandum that establishes a White House Task Force aiming to protect students from sexual violence and increase prevention efforts in schools.<\/p>\n

Their address touched on some important talking points surrounding sexual violence in order to stress its severity. Here are some excerpts:<\/p>\n

VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Victim-blaming: \u201cWe have to stop blaming the victims for these crimes. No one ever asks the person who got robbed at gunpoint on the street, \u201cWhy were you there? What were you doing? What were you wearing?\u201d We encourage people to come forward! We don\u2019t have to explain why someone took our money.\u201d<\/li>\n
  2. Human liberties: \u201cFreedom from sexual assault is a basic human right\u2026 A nation\u2019s decency is in large part measured by how it responds to violence against women.\u201d<\/li>\n
  3. Consent: \u201cNo man has a right to go beyond the word \u2018No,\u2019 and if she cannot consent. That also means \u2018No.\u2019 That is a crime.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Recovery: \u201cFor survivors, the awful pain can take years, even decades to heal. Sometimes it last a lifetime.\u201d<\/li>\n
    2. National Impact: \u201cIt has to matter to all of us because when a young girl or young boy begins to question their self-worth after being assaulted and starts withdrawing, we\u2019re all deprived of their full potential. When a young woman drops out of school after being attacked, that\u2019s not just a loss for her, that\u2019s a loss for our country. We\u2019ve all got a stake in that young woman\u2019s success. When a mother struggles to keep a job after an assault, or is assaulted in order to keep a job, that matters to all of us\u2026 If we\u2019re not there supporting them, shame on us.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      The President went on to discuss some of the goals and details of this new initiative. The task force will be led by the Office of the Vice President and the White House Council on Women and Girls, and will place emphasis on developing a response to rape and sexual assault on college campuses. One of the main goals is prevention; therefore the task force will provide institutions with evidence-based, promising practices for preventing and responding to rape and sexual assault. The task force will also hold these institutions accountable for applying these methods.<\/p>\n

      We at PAAR want to highlight the feature of the plan that includes \u201cincreasing the transparency of the Federal Government\u2019s enforcement activities concerning rape and sexual assault.\u201d This means that the information regarding the task force\u2019s actions will be more readily available to the public.<\/p>\n

      PAAR has high hopes for the White House\u2019s Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault. Please stay tuned with us as we track its progress. We have included the video of President Obama\u2019s speech below. Let us know your feelings on it!<\/p>\n