No means no: It’s a simple message, but sadly, one taken in vain all too often.
On the 17th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act (VAMA), Vice President Joe Biden opened up an important conversation to young women and men about reducing sexual violence: “1 is too many.”
Recent statistics by the U.S Department of Justice Bureau of Justice show that young women between the ages of 16-24 continue to experience the highest rates of rape and sexual assault. One in five young women will be a victim of sexual assault during college, and 85 percent of victims are assaulted by someone they know.
The Vice President is encouraging students and young people to submit their ideas on improving campus and school resources to help in the increase of awareness and prevention of sexual abuse. In his video message below, Vice President Biden says, “No means no. No means no if she’s drunk or you’re sober. No mean no if you’re in a dorm room or on the street. No means no even if she said yes first, and changed her mind. No means no, no matter what.”
You can join this conversation by either adding to the whitehouse.gov/1is2many page or by using the hashtag #1is2many on Twitter. Speak up; sexual abuse is a crime and there’s no such thing as an innocent bystander.
