Along with hosting one of the country’s favorite holidays, October is also known for showcasing a heavy but important subject: Domestic Violence Awareness. Originally called the “Day of Unity”, Domestic Violence Awareness Month started as a day dedicated to activities conducted at local, state, and national levels. In October 1987, the first Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM) was held.
Currently, DVAM is participated statewide and locally, focusing on community outreach, public awareness, victim service organizations and public education campaigns.
Experts on domestic violence come from around the country to speak at events to raise awareness about this subject, one of them being our new Assistant Dean of Students Peter Meagher. Meagher has been involved with violence prevention in the college setting for the past ten years and has presented at national conferences on the subject.
As part of his duties, Meagher is sponsoring awareness events this year for Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
“I have been involved with education around these types of issues for around twenty years. I began to develop a passion for raising awareness when I got into the college atmosphere. It has become a very big part of my life,” he said.
Although some progressive actions have been taken at Gustavus to raise awareness about domestic violence, Meagher hopes to make a difference on campus by taking further steps. Junior Nursing Major Audrey Willems Van Dijk is an active participant in the Womyn’s Awareness Center at Gustvaus and hopes to see more being done on campus about this subject as well.
“When reflecting on others and my own interaction with this issue on campus the only information that has been presented was during orientation through skits such as the Inside Scoop and E Pluribus Gustavus. However, besides the pamphlets that students pass daily outside the health services or inside the counseling office, there has been little to no further information provided to the students on this campus about domestic violence,” Van Dijk said.
The biggest step for Meagher at Gustavus will be his launch of an annual campaign against domestic violence called “How to Spot a Loser Lover.”
The campaign, although in its beginning stages, has already hit the ground running. Hoping to launch the campaign by the end of the month, Meagher is working hard to produce posters to raise awareness that will be hung around campus.
The platform for the campaign, “How to Spot a Loser Lover”, is based on how to recognize and get help with partner violence. Some main points include What is sexual abuse?, warning signs of dating violence and the abuse cycle.
Dating Violence is characterized by Meagher as a pattern of controlling behavior in which an intimate partner uses emotional, physical, sexual, economic or cultural abuse to control the partner in the relationship.
Having experience speaking and interacting with students about domestic violence, Meagher feels it is critically important to share the message of domestic violence and how it translates to the college-age relationship.
“I am hoping to inform students that domestic violence involves, for some, bruises and broken bones and so much more. It about exercising power and control in a relationship,” he said.
Many students may look at this as a strictly “adult” or marriage related issue, when in fact, it can occur at many relationship levels and environments.
“As we are a campus focused on social justice I do believe students would rally behind a campaign regarding domestic violence. Especially if students are made aware how prominent this problem may be within the college community,” Van Dijk said.
Often, those in an abusive relationship are afraid to acknowledge or reach out for help. By bringing the topic out into the open Meagher hopes that students in an abusive relationship will seek assistance.
In the future, Meagher intends to bring speakers and larger events to campus. “I want to give students the courage and tools to recognize a “loser lover” ahead of time. Many students don’t realize that they are equally succeptible to these types of problems in the college atmosphere as anywhere else,” he said.
If you think you are a victim of sexual assault or domestic violence, call the police and reach out to resources on campus including: the counseling center, Womyn’s Awareness Center, Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) or Campus Safety.
Meet Peter Meagher
Peter Meagher has extensive experience in campus violence intervention and prevention efforts. He has led training sessions in colleges and other educational settings that have focused on male violence since the late 1980s. Dr. Meagher pioneered comprehensive educational efforts to combat violence against women that included the creation of a vibrant peer education program and the establishment of a robust Men Against Violence program. He has also developed model response protocols and policies to address sexual misconduct on college campuses.