Wednesday, March 28, 2001
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Wednesday, March 28, 2001 |
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Students learning about rape, abuse Did you know that 25 percent of rapes take place in public places. Sixty-eight percent occur between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m., and only 26 percent of rapes are reported. These are among facts being learned this week at Sandy Creek High School, where students are taking part in Abuse Awareness Week. Four sociology classes consisting of 80 students have been studying the issues of domestic violence, abusive relationships and rape. They've also learned that 45 percent of rapists are under the influence of drugs, that 29 percent of rapes include weapons, that 75 percent of victims require medical attention, that every 12 seconds a woman is beaten, that 21 percent of sex offenders are under 21, and that 16 percent are over 50. Also, in recent weeks the students have been studying issues that deal with poverty, juvenile crime and related topics. The sociology students are becoming experts in these topics, according to a press release written by the class, in order to share the information with the rest of the school. Students have split up into committees focusing on a variety of topics and tasks: The sign committee makes signs and posters with information about rape and abusive relationships; a ribbon group will give ribbons to faculty and students to symbolize the awareness of violence; another group will wear red shirts, with a white cutout hand on one of 18 to symbolize the ratio of teens who are abused; a group of speakers will visit other classes to pass on the information they have learned and suggest ways to avoid abusive situations; a group will pass out stickers to every 18th student, again to represent the ratio of abused and abusive teens; a group will wear bruise makeup using the 1:18 ratio. Speakers from the Southern Crescent Sexual Assault Center also will speak to selected classes.
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