A N E W RIT E O F PAS SAG E:
FRATERNIT Y MEN AS SEXUAL VIOLENCE PREVENTION EDUCATORS
KEVIN CAREY Four years ago I sat in my office contemplating how fraternity and sorority life could internally and proactively address sexual violence. I shared my thoughts with a student intern, who immediately came up with an idea to create a peer-to-peer, train-the-trainer program called “Greek Peer Advocates.” While about 70 individuals signed up for the pilot, engagement in the training sessions slowly dwindled over time. The loss of engagement was from fraternity men. This experience was the first time I was prompted to think about how to invite and engage fraternity men to facilitate, lead, and champion sexual violence prevention on college campuses. Now, when I plan and facilitate sexual violence prevention education programs, I always note how many male identifying individuals attend and am hopeful they are engaged in learning and discussion. Following programs, I often reflect upon how I can encourage and invite more men to attend sessions focused on topics related to sexual violence. The vast majority of higher education institutions fail to target and engage men meaningfully in proactive prevention efforts.1 All-male organizations (i.e. fraternities, athletic teams, living communities) may view sexually violent behavior as normal because male peers encourage
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the same beliefs and actions.2 Fraternity men can be the champions, catalysts, and safe social norm creators of sexual violence prevention education on college campuses. With relevant and timely models for men’s engagement and sexual violence prevention frameworks, campus-based professionals and headquarters staff can provide comprehensive, holistic prevention education to the community and institution at-large by inviting and engaging men to lead. While many campuses have sexual violence prevention educators — both students and staff — and centers or offices doing this work, fraternity and sorority offices and headquarters can serve the work of campus prevention, too. In this year’s third issue of Perspectives, I called attention to the belief fraternity and sorority advisors — and those who work in the industry at-large — are also prevention educators. We increasingly see communities create positions and hire individuals to specifically do health and safety programming for fraternity and sorority members and chapters. While this occurs, we must determine how to respond to fraternity members’ programmatic needs and what strategies we utilize to invite and inspire fraternity men to engage in sexual violence prevention initiatives.
Hong, L. (2010). Toward a transformed approach to prevention: Breaking the link between masculinity and violence. Journal of American College Health, 48(6), 269. Seabrook, R. C., Ward, L. M., & Giaccardi, S. (2018). Why is fraternity membership associated with sexual assault? Exploring the roles of conformity to masculine norms, pressure to uphold masculinity, and objectification of women. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 19 (1), 3-13.
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