Hello again everyone!
As finals are are finally (see what I did there?) drawing to a close, I've been throwing myself into research for my paper. I'm going to visit a friend at UVA for the next few days while she finishes her finals, and I hope to finally hammer out a thesis and figure out how to incorporate the best practice organizations I'm looking at.
Leigh recently sent me an awesome article about schools teaching sex-ed (you can read it here: http://time.com/why-schools-cant-teach-sex-ed/), which helped remind me about the uphill battle it will be to convince schools that students really do need comprehensive sex education. Previous generations didn't have to deal with the ubiquity of porn, which is why many parents today seem to be taking a it-doesn't-exist approach. Reading this article reminded me that much of my research and questions for the organizations need to be about how they think we can get schools to recognize that kids need comprehensive sex ed - and then actually want to teach it.
As I prepare to go home on Wednesday I'm thinking about all the time I'll have to spend around my parents (who know that I'm a sexual assault survivor but pretend they don't) and my extended family (who through their willful ignorance of Facebook don't know). I can feel my body preparing itself for several long weeks of battle, especially when so much of my break is going to be dedicated to writing this paper. Sex ed and sexual assault are going to be on my mind; I'm going to want to talk about it. I'm hoping that by pretending that my parents aren't pretending that I'm a survivor, I can convince them to actually consider what I'm doing worthwhile work. I know parental validation isn't everything in this world, but I relied so heavily on their validation in high school and not having that anymore is tough. Long story short - this should be an interesting break.
Until next time,
Dana
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Dana, I just want to give you a hug! I guess every parent sees their own children as still young and needing "protection", and it is stressful to realize that parents can't always protect their children. Maybe over this holiday as you focus more on education as the solution to and prevention of sexual assault, they will begin to see you as the competent researcher you are and a leader in women's equality issues. You are still their "little girl", but they can proudly recognize that you have passion and expertise to help solve a real-world issue to educate and support other young women (like your sister)--and young men--to develop healthy relationships based on equality and respect for each other. Thank you for your serious work on the subject of ending sexual assault.
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