Creative flow

Oh my god, I feel so excited right now! As I've said in past updates, I'm going to college in the fall.

Now, since my first round of 12th grade, I've wanted to do a campaign on sexual assault that opens it's arms to both male and female victims as well as informs people who have never experienced this crime what their survivor friends are experiencing, and what they can do. I'd emphasize on resources for survivors, abolishing myths, and highlighting the aftereffects of sexual assault. Somehow, all this would be done in a safe setting and obviously triggers would still be there.. but I'd really want to create a space for those affected by it to express themselves while secondary survivors get a better understanding. With those three areas to hit on, maybe that might be accomplished.

I've chosen those three main areas to hit because of what I've noticed just from the people I've interacted with in high school and being sexually harassed. Firstly, I didn't even know what had happened counted as sexual harassment, and I didn't know where to go or who to talk to.
Secondly, for my friends and family members, I wanted to help them understand what was going on in my head.
Thirdly, I did my senior project which talked about sexual assault with freshmen and a friendship almost got ruined from a really hurtful thing a friend said to me. We worked it out, but it was a brutal reminder that rape culture is alive even in high school.

Now, with what I'm planning, it's going to be at my college but I want to contact the high schools in this area so they can tell their students. That way, the college gets promotion and RAINN gets promotion.. other sources get promotion, and people get informed or help--even both.

The idea is still in the sketching stages, but what I hope to achieve is a campus-wide event (or at least spread out in a contained area) with different sections that represent a stage in the emotional aftereffect of sexual assault. At the anger section, maybe I can get old dishes or pillows to be broken or punched so they can take their anger out.
In the saddness/grief/depression sort of area, I want to have flyers with a big candle printed on them and lots of coloring tools so people can color in their own candle and have it posted on a wall. The candle can be "lit" to grieve the person they used to be or a vigil for someone they knew, or even just for all survivors. Affirmations and hopes for the future can be written on them.

For other sections, I'm not sure yet. I need to brush up on my research.

Meanwhile, inbetween all the sections will be informative posters that show statistics that affect both men and women plus abolishing the myths.

It'd be even better if I can have a timer that runs through the whole event that marks a tally for each time someone is sexually assaulted in the United States (every 2.5 minutes).

Speeches can be made throughout the day by speakers, maybe with an open mic time for survivors to come up on the stage to say what they want to say. At the end of the rally, the tally will be counted and the number of people sexually assaulted during that time span could be said out loud. Maybe we can have a moment of silence.

I'd have hotlines for victims posted EVERYWHERE, as well as URLS and organizations that also work to raise awareness.

Oh man, this is getting to be a huge idea but I really want to do this. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and the 2010 theme is campus-orientated, and that is so perfect I can just explode.

But I must get organized first.