MSVU

Facilitator: What are some things we would ask ourselves when making suggestions [to a friend who has been sexually assaulted]? What would we need to think about before giving advice? Participant 1: Did you give…

Participant 1: But what kind of sexual assault is here? Facilitator: If anyone tries to touch your friend, like, that is a problem. Participant 1: I mean like, come on guys. We are all from…

Participant 1: Yeah, don’t wash afterwards. Participant 2: Yeah, ’cause the DNA is still on you. Participant 3: Like, if something happened to your friend, you should ask if they showered. […] Participant 1: If…

Facilitator: Also, do you guys feel like it should be mandatory for the offender to go to a number of counselling sessions along with action being taken for it? Participant 1: Mhm. Participant 2: Yeah,…

[When supporting a survivor], I would say try to be less formal – be informal! Like, act as if you care and are not just asking me because you have to […]. And don’t come…

Facilitator: Do you think that you would visit a counsellor’s office to ask for help if something like this happened? Participant 1: Here? Facilitator: Yeah. Participant 1: I’ve never been there, but honestly, no. Participant…

I guess [the policy is] relevant, but at the same time, it’s like, if you go through all these steps, what is the result? Am I actually going to get help? Or will it just…

Participant 1: What if it’s, like, a form of assault, but it’s not on the policy? They’re just like [claps hand to indicate closing the file]. Participant 3: It doesn’t say verbal. I don’t know…

I feel like sexual assault policies, in general, are very female-targeted. They are not really male-targeted at all, which is a problem because a lot of men also get sexually assaulted. […] At the Mount,…

My family does not know that I was assaulted. Even with the whole Bret Kavanaugh thing that is going on in the states, there is this [pause] not necessarily blaming, but there is like, “something…