By: Liara Aber
n 2014, the Obama-Biden administration created It’s On Us, a nonprofit for sexual assault prevention. U of I student, Ella Dennis has been researching sexual assault prevention since she was a freshman but officially brought this national movement to the U of I’s campus this week. Dennis says “U of I, like a lot of other big schools, is kind of notorious for rape culture and for not having a very humanistic response to survivors”
Instead of teaching targeted populations how to defend themselves, Dennis says It’s On Us works on changing social norms. The organization targets stereotypes about gender and sexuality that can lead to sexual assault. Dennis says the organization is, “much more of a more bottom-up approach to sexual assault prevention”
The RSO is officially affiliated with the Women’s Resource Center. Here, they are able to receive advising and become a part of the Gender Liberation Alliance and Movement, or GLAM. GLAM is a group of RSO’s focused on liberating minoritized genders and sexualities. Dennis says this will help make sure everyone feels seen and heard, “because at the end of the day, that’s the only way that it’s effective”
Mia Macias, the director of marketing for the group, says she hopes to partner with Greek life. Macias says a lot of sexual assault is perpetrated in frats and that through education, her group, “can do a lot to prevent those unfortunate scenarios from happening.”
The group also has plans for community education workshops, bystander training, and advocacy work with local government. Macias and Dennis both say they’re looking forward to the future of the RSO and encourage anyone to join the movement.
If you want to get involved you can sign up for the It’s On Us email list on the U of I’s RSO website. Or you can join the GroupMe linked on their Instagram page, itsonus_uiuc. Their next info session will be held Monday at 6 pm on Zoom.
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