The Greene Street fields resembled a middle school playground Friday afternoon as over 150 people and four dogs showed up to play kickball and raise money to prevent sexual assault.
The service sorority Omega Phi Alpha held this event as a part of the "It’s On Us" initiative started by the Obama administration as a way to encourage college students to have a discussion about bystander accountability — understanding consent and acting in situations when consent is not possible — and its importance in preventing sexual assault.
"Basically it's about the little things every individual can do to keep each other safe; it says it's on all of us to prevent sexual assaults,” event organizer Cassie Coleman said.
Coleman, a fourth-year political science student, decided to organize the "It’s On Us" kickball tournament after hearing about their national Week of Action, which encourages campuses to host events. Omega Phi Alpha worked with Student Government to promote the event. Tradeversity also sponsored the event, donating $1 to Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands for each app download. Coleman saw firsthand the positive impact STSM can have after bringing a close friend who had been sexually assaulted to the hospital last semester.
"An advocate from Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands and another from USC's Sexual Assault and Violence Intervention and Prevention came and sat with us the whole day while we waited for a forensic nurse. The only nurse on call that day was with another survivor when we arrived, so we had to wait over five hours for my friend to be seen," Coleman said. "She probably would not have stayed that long if the advocates hadn't been with us, and I think the intensity of the reporting process is something so many people don't understand. So this April, this Sexual Assault Awareness Month, I was determined to do my part in talking to people about what consent is, what assault is, and where to find resources in the community for survivors."
The tournament included two brackets, and the 16 teams raised approximately $400 for STSM. Coleman and Omega Phi Alpha were very excited about the turnout and could see it becoming an annual project.
“There's so much potential for growth and we can only spread more awareness! I'm graduating this semester, but some sisters already asked me for thoughts on making it better next year!” Coleman said.