On March 18, students gathered at the University Memorial Center to demand that the University of Colorado, Boulder take more action to investigate students who are accused of rape or sexual assault.
This protest came after CU student, Zachary Roper, was charged with 2 counts of sexual assault on March 14. Roper was accused of sexually assaulting a student following a sorority event. Approximately thirty students attended the protest and demanded the university suspend Roper until his trial and expel him if he is found guilty.
Students carried signs that read, “I Believe Survivors,” and chanted “Stop the silence. End the violence.” Their purpose for being there was not only to protest Roper, but also to share their own experiences as survivors of sexual assault. Ultimately this extended not only to the larger Boulder area, but to the national conversation surrounding the “Me Too” movement.
Conversations about sexual assault are common on college campuses. The topic of consent, however, is something that often does not always get addressed.
Students agree that consent can be unclear. There are ways, however, to identify what is consent and what is not.
“There’s a certain amount of needing to pay attention to people’s nonverbal signals,” said Leila Browne, a student at CU Boulder. “Whether there’s enthusiasm or hesitance is a really useful way to read consent.”
According to a Planned Parenthood survey, there are differences in how men and women define consent. The study found that women were significantly more likely than men to strongly agree that consent must be given every time you have sex, and were more likely to disagree that consent continues after the first encounter. This survey is just one example of how consent can sometimes be unclear.
Even in a legal sense, all states have different laws for defining consent. In Colorado, a person has to be 17 years old to give consent, and the definition of consent does not include freely given consent or affirmative consent. Affirmative consent means that consent is clear, knowing, and voluntary.
CU Boulder’s definition of consent does have an affirmative consent standard, and states that, “Consent must include words or actions that create mutually understandable, clear permission conveying acceptance of the conditions of the sexual activity and willingness to engage in the sexual activity.”
“Colorado has a fairly broad and comprehensive set of state laws and our university has a well-established and defined set of university policies,” said Teresa Wroe, the Director of Education and Prevention and Deputy Title IX Coordinator at the Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance.
“The word affirmative was added to our definition to help people further recognize that consent is something that needs to be established before sexual activity,” said Wroe. “This is to further the understanding that consent is not about doing whatever one wants until they get told not to, which is often the message that is conveyed about consent by society.”
While the definitions of consent vary among college students, many students at the protest agreed that consent needs to be a verbal yes.
“Consent is so much more than a lack of saying no,” said Alex Wolf-Root, a student at CU Boulder. “Just because you have been sexually involved with someone in the past doesn’t mean that you consent the next time. It has to be an open question every time.”
With April being Sexual Assault Awareness Month, consent must be a part of the conversation. CU Boulder has the chance to set an example and give voice to the survivors both on campus and nationally.
“We demand accountability. We demand an environment that we can learn and teach without fear of sexual assault,” said Samantha West, a graduate student at CU Boulder who attended the protest at the UMC. “We believe survivors and the administration should reflect that.”