Live at 6 | Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Riley Burg – Syracuse, N.Y. (CitrusTV) – April will shower the nation wil conversations surrounding sexual assault.

Over the last six months, increasing numbers of campaigns and individuals continue to come forward to raise awareness about the issue to sexual assault.

Dr. Fanelli gives lectures to his Human Sexuality class every semester on sexual assault.

“People need to be able to talk about this, make it transparent, understand, that this kind of influence, manipulation, power, is in no one’s best interest,” he said.

In his lectures, he states that 1 in 5 women in college campuses have been victims of sexual assault.

“What drives me, it wanting these young adults to have the skills necessary to have happy, healthy relationships.”

Nathalie Pollack, a victim herself, is now a senior at SU. During her freshman year, she brought the #ItsOnUs movement to campus, feeling it was important to start discussion of the topic here at SU.

“We have to talk about it and we have to start realizing that it is a problem that we need to change,” she said.

Given the current climate in the United States, this change seems to be happening. Nathalie commented on how amazed she was by how many have come forward to support discussion around the topic.

“I never would have guessed, even five years ago, that the Golden Globes would have literally everyone dressed in black to advocate for time’s up and show support for survivors,” she said.