The OU Gender + Equality Center, in partnership with OSU’s 1 is 2 Many Program, will host a virtual fireside chat with Chanel Miller Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Miller is the survivor of a largely publicized sexual assault case at Stanford University in 2015, which she published a book on in 2019. The case has since been a topic for debate on how states deal with sex-related crimes, especially the effects race and wealth have on sentencing for such crimes.
Bliss Brown, the program coordinator for gender-based violence in the GEC, said the event is part of a month-long series for sexual assault awareness month.
“This event is one of many the Gender + Equality Center is hosting for Sexual Assault Awareness Month during April,” Brown said. “Our peer educator team does a great job educating students about consent, active bystander intervention and resources on campus, but the everyday student rarely, if ever, gets to hear how their peers have been personally impacted by sexual violence. This is an opportunity for our campus community to hear a survivor of sexual violence tell her story first-hand.”
Miller’s story became viral on social media after she released a victim impact statement unveiling her name and inspiring change in legislation across the nation, according to a Monday email. According to the email, Miller now “reclaims her identity to tell her story of trauma, transcendence, and the power of words.”
Brown said she hopes this event will encourage students to have more empathy for survivors of sexual violence and help them understand the aftermath of these cases.
“While sexual violence is still happening on our campus, we have to continue having these conversations,” Brown said. “The #MeToo Movement has done so much to educate people about the importance of sexual violence prevention, but there is still so much work to be done and so much more to learn. Additionally, given the rise in anti-Asian violence in the past year, we felt it was important to amplify the voice of an Asian-identified survivor of sexual violence.”
Anyone interested in attending the event can register for the Zoom conference here.
