First off, I would like to applaud The State News for finally stepping up and presenting quality information on sexual assault with its recent series. Although I do think it’s quite interesting how this is being publicized now because the assailant was a non-MSU affiliated male rather than two male MSU basketball players. And yes, I am referring to the case last year when East Lansing prosecutors denied charges to be brought to these two MSU student-athletes when the case report was revealed and clearly showed sexual assault was committed. Nor were the two players punished by either the university or Men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo. But the alleged female victim/survivor will live with the effects of being sexually assaulted publicly and internally for the rest of her life.

Unfortunately, sexual assault has been a prevalent issue on MSU’s campus since the 1970s. Around this time, a woman with a martial arts background began going around to the dorms and teaching females basic moves to defend and empower themselves if they came into this situation. This has evolved into a free, two-hour program from MSU Sports and Recreational Fitness Services and is taught by trained facilitators who are MSU students themselves, to both females AND males of the MSU community. MSU is a rare university that has many resources available to its community on not only sexual assault awareness and prevention but also assistance, not just run by women but men, too, for survivors.