Michigan’s first lady Sue Snyder, along with state legislators, held a summit in Downtown Lansing on Monday to address the issue of ending sexual assault on college campuses across the state.
The "Let’s End Campus Sexual Assault” summit saw college and university officials from across the country, as well as students from various colleges, legislators, police enforcement, sexual assault experts and sexual assault survivors, come together to address the increasingly prominent issue of sexual assault on college campuses across not only the state, but the country.
The event kicked off with Gov. Rick Snyder and Sue Snyder addressing a crowd of over 400 people at the Lansing Center in Downtown Lansing.
“I have no doubt that together we will set a positive example and make Michigan a leader in the fight against sexual assault on our college and university campuses,” Sue Snyder said.
Rick Snyder said one of the purposes of hosting the summit was to allow representatives from many colleges and universities across the state to get together and begin collaboration to find the best ways to prevent and respond to sexual assault.
“The good part is that I think we have most of the colleges represented in some fashion today, and that will give us the opportunity to have that dialogue and discussion and to learn about what’s best practice,” Rick Snyder said. “So I think this is a good learning opportunity for those institutions and how we can share and be stronger together.”
Sexual assault survivor Emma Hanrahan said part of the issue is the rape culture we have today.
“By victim blaming, they are making some sort of excuse for the perpetrator or the offender, for his actions. Like, I was wearing a tank top that night, I was dressing a certain way, so I was asking to be attacked. I drank too much, so it's my fault that happened to me," Hanrahan said. "Honestly, I could be walking around with no clothes on; that doesn’t give anyone the right to violate me.”
The big announcement of the day, however, was when Michigan State Police director Col. Kriste Kibbey Etue announced a proposal for $500,000 in grant funds for the 2016 fiscal year, which starts Oct. 1., that will go toward implementing programs aimed at ending sexual assault on Michigan’s campuses.
“This is the first time the state of Michigan has dedicated general funds that will actually work to prevent sexual assault in Michigan,” Etue said.
Etue said the Michigan State Police will administer the grant and will follow a set of guidelines that will be developed by a committee that will also review all the grant applications when submitted. She said the committee will be a broad and diverse group to ensure the the needs of the diverse groups of students and community members are met.
