TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The book "Unsafe on any Campus" was released in July and details administrators inability to adequately deal with sexual assaults on campus. But, the author now said their problem could be more difficult because of lewd remarks by Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
When the Washington Post released the video of Trump making lewd remarks about women, Sam Staley, Ph.D., the author of "Unsafe on any Campus" was angry.
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"Eighteen to 20 percent of women will report, by the time they have graduated will report they have been sexually assaulted. They have actually experienced the things that Donald Trump is bragging about in that tape,” said Staley.
Staley has spent years teaching women about self defense, and he said the Trump video only emboldens a corrupt, uncaring and demeaning treatment of women.
“He seems completely unaware of how that kind of talk is contributing to a campus climate that supports sexual assault," Staley said. "And it's very clear, and we actually have a lot of research that shows its these group attitudes about how they diminish the dignity and agency of women that really sets up an environment in which sexual assault happens."
The book advocates bystander intervention, like friends telling friends to back off.
The author said no one on the bus stopped the banter, making them co-owners of the remarks.
“I can’t imagine that if those guys were talking about Trump’s daughter that way that he be anywhere near as calm or willing to justify their behavior, but it gets them off the hook," Staley said.
Staley said he is a Libertarian and he is not voting for Trump or Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
When it comes to campus assaults, "he said / she said" statments make criminal prosecution difficult, so the author said colleges and Universities need other tools such as suspension when charges can’t be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.