Clarification appended
Public Safety’s assault defense program provides its services to more than just females.
Rape Aggression Defense is a course offered by AU for women to train how to combat sexual assault. This differs from the program available for males, Resisting Aggression with Defense, influences how men react to aggressive situations on a daily basis.
Senior citizens are able to participate in the program as well, according Will Sowers, manager of administrative services for Public Safety.
RAD was advertised on a poster as “a free four day workshop that educates women” with the word “women” in red capitalized letters. The poster was displayed near Megabytes in the first few weeks of school.
Public Safety said the poster’s target group was women because of the high statistics of sexual assault against this gender group.
Approximately 25 percent of women nationwide are assaulted during their college career, according to AU Sexual Assault Prevention Coordinator and Campus Victim Advocate Daniel Rappaport.
Other groups are allowed to take courses relevant to their gender and age even though they were excluded from the poster’s message.
“The RAD Program’s curriculum is focused on specific groups to ensure a comfortable, appropriate training environment,” Sowers said in an email.
While males were not displayed on the poster, a male defense program is listed on the RAD website. The men’s section provides the same service but “empower[s] men to make different decisions when confronted with aggressive behavior,” according to the RAD website.
“RAD is just one piece to making sure everyone on our campus is safe,” Rappaport said.
Clarification: Two different classes are offered to men and women. Rape Aggression Defense is for women and Resisting Aggression with Defense is for men.
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