COLLEGE STATION, Texas — College is back in session and for many freshmen, this is a transition into adulthood; but with this new environment comes new dangers to be aware of.
Lindsey LeBlanc, Executive Director of Brazos Valley's SARC, Sexual Assault Resource Center, gave insight on how to prepare for this transition.
“You’re exploring the world and that’s the beauty and the benefit of college is that you get that time to explore, but within that also means that we have to know ourselves," LeBlanc said. "That we have to set our boundaries and have those conversations often with ourselves first and talk about what are we okay with and what are not okay with, and as we progress through those relationships that we’re having those conversations with that person as well.”
While exploring new relationships in adulthood, many might not have a clear or concise idea of consent and what it means.
“If you look back 20, 40 years ago, consent is something we didn’t have words for. I think there's always an underlying human component of consent but now, we have much more robust language on what consent looks like, enthusiastic consent is what SARC specifically teaches,” explained LeBlanc.
Navigating sexual assault is not easy, but local resources want young adults to know there are places to find assistance despite stigma around.
“While its 2023, we’d love to say there's no shame with sexual assault survivors, that’s not true," LeBlanc noted. "There is still shame, there is still often that feeling that they need to stay silent, or that their story or their words don't matter, and here at SARC that’s absolutely not true. Our tagline is we see you, we hear you, we believe you, and we want to no that survivor know that.”
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