Title IX

Risk Reduction Tips

These suggestions may help reduce your risk of being a victim of sexual discrimination or harassment:

• Recognize your own boundaries regarding sexual activity, and make them known to your potential partner.
• If possible, tell the sexual aggressor "NO".
• Make a log detailing the dates, times, and nature of confrontations.
• Try to remove yourself from the physical presence of a sexual aggressor.
• Grab someone nearby and ask for help.
• Be responsible for your alcohol intake/drug use and realize that alcohol/drugs lower your sexual inhibitions and may make you vulnerable.
• Watch out for your friends and ask that they watch out for you.  A real friend will get in your face if you are about to make a mistake.  Respect them if they do.
• If you find yourself in the position of being the initiator of sexual behavior, you owe sexual respect to your potential partner.

These suggestions may help reduce your risk for being accused of sexual discrimination or harassment:

• Don't make assumptions about consent, about someone's sexual availability, about whether they are attracted to you, about how far you can go, about whether they are physically and mentally able to consent to you.
• Clearly communicate your intentions to your sexual partner and give them a chance to clearly relate their intentions to you.
• Mixed messages from your partner should be a clear indication that you should step back, defuse the sexual tension, and communicate better.  Perhaps you are misreading them.  Perhaps they haven't figured out how far they want to go with you yet.  You need to respect the timeline with which they are comfortable.
• Don't take advantage of someone's drunkenness or drugged state.  If a person is substantially impaired due to the consumption of alcohol or other drugs, then that person cannot legally give consent to sexual activity.
• Realize that your potential partner could be intimidated by you, or fearful.  You may have a power advantage simply because of your gender, sex or authority.  Don't abuse that power.
• Understand that consent to some forms of sexual behavior does not necessarily imply consent to other forms of sexual behavior.
• On this campus, silence and passivity cannot be interpreted by you as an indication of consent.  Read your potential partner carefully, paying attention to verbal and non-verbal communication and body language.
• When in doubt, ask!  Someone may simply not be interested in you and does not want to offend or hurt you.  State your interests clearly, and ask them to do the same, and leave them alone if they are not interested.