Events and education

We encourage everyone in the university community to get involved in our programs that aim to help eliminate all types of violence at the university.

We strive to create a welcoming, inclusive community at the university that supports and promotes compassion, equity and respect among our members. In this way, we condemn any behaviour that perpetuates sexual violence and domestic violence. Through education and preventative programming are working to cultivate a culture on campus where we are all responsible for ensuring that members of our community are safe and healthy in order to reach their full potential.

Workshops
Pledge
First Year Me
Self Defense Classes
Other Events
Definitions

Disclosure training

The goal of this 1.5 hour workshop is to develop effective and supportive responses to victims and survivors who disclose having experienced sexual and/or domestic violence to best maintain that individual's dignity and well-being.

This workshop provides information on:

- An overview of sexual and domestic violence and consent.
- Advice on how to effectively support someone who has disclosed.
  - What to say, and things to avoid saying.
- Referring to appropriate supports.
  - What happens after a referral.
- Confidentiality, and the limitations.
- Navigating the university's resources on sexual violence prevention.
- Understanding how to support yourself after a disclosure.
  - Support services available for staff and students who receive disclosures.

Open workshops will resume in the 2018-2019 academic year. If you are interested in having this workshop brought to your department or group, please email equity@uoit.ca.

RISE: Sexual Violence Prevention

RISE Program (Respecting Individuals and Supporting Equity)

RISE: Sexual Violence Prevention is a bystander intervention skills workshop where pparticipants will identify ways that they can prevent, intervene, and respond to sexual violence and domestic violence, and discuss topics such as rape culture, consent, and the spectrum of sexual violence.

Learn more and to register for an upcoming RISE workshop.

Every January, members of the UOIT community come together to recommit their pledge to end sexual violence by focusing on preventing behaviours and attitudes that perpetuate sexual violence, such as apathetic bystanders, denigration of women, excusing those who commit sexual violence, sexism, strict gender roles, trivialization of sexual violence, victim blaming and more.

We want you to make a personal pledge to demonstrate your commitment to ending sexual violence and willingness to counter the things that allow sexual violence to continue. Our campaign will launch once again in January 2019.

Some examples of pledges that promote a positive message:

To acknowledge sexist attitudes and behaviours when they arise.
To always ask for consent.
To believe victims and survivors.
To challenge victim blaming.
To educate myself on how to have conversations about consent.
To educate others if they joke about rape.
To learn more about campus resources for victims and survivors.
To respect a victim or survivor's choice to report or not report an incident.
To see myself as an empowered bystander and intervene when appropriate.

We would like to turn the narrative about sexual violence away from one that places the blame on the survivors. This narrative may sound like one that “tells people not to wear revealing clothing” or “not to walk alone at night.” Our narrative needs to focus on promoting messages such as “don’t commit sexual violence” and “we all have a role in ending this.” When we change the way we think, discuss and react to sexual violence, we help create a community focused on preventing sexual violence.

First Year Me is a theatrical play presented by upper-year students during Ignite Orientation, highlighting sexual violence and the complexities involved with being a bystander, consent, support for survivors, along with a broad range of other issues students may encounter in post-secondary education.

Fall 2019 Schedule

Facilitator: Brian Johns
Free classes to develop the skills and confidence to help prevent violence.

Women’s Only

Mondays 2:10 to 3 p.m.
Thursdays 4:10 to 5 p.m.

All Gender

Mondays 3:10 to 4 p.m.

Classes run from September 23 to December 5
(No classes during the week of October 14)
Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre, Aerobics Room 1
No registration required. Please bring your student ID

For more information, contact equity@uoit.ca

Watch this page for other events and activities, such as:

Sexual Violence Prevention Summit, Saturday, January 19, 2019 from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (*registration begins at 9:30 a.m.) in SIRC 2060
Check back regularly for other updates with new events and opportunities.

Term	Definition
Consent	Consent is an active, direct, voluntary, unimpaired and conscious choice and agreement to engage or continue in a sexual activity. Consent to one act does not mean consent to another. Consent: Is never assumed or implied. Is not silence or the absence of 'no.' Cannot be given if the person is impaired by alcohol or drugs, or is unconscious. Is required regardless of the parties’ relationship status or sexual history together. Can be taken back, either through words (e.g. saying no) or body language (e.g. pushing someone away). Can never be obtained through threats or coercion. Cannot be given if the other person abuses a position of trust, power or authority.
Criminal harassment	Criminal harassment is repeated behaviour that results in an individual feeling as though their personal safety is at risk. Criminal harassment includes, but is not limited to what is conventionally referred to as stalking and cyberbullying. Criminal harassment includes: Unsolicited communications, either verbal or digital. Following a person. Watching a person’s home, or other places where they may travel or work. Threatening the person or their family.
Cyberbullying	Cyberbullying involves using digital communication technologies to engage in harassing behaviour against others. Cyberbullying includes: Sending mean or threatening emails or text/instant messages. Posting embarrassing photos of someone online. Posting degrading or harassing content online. Creating websites to make fun of others. Pretending to be someone by using their name. Tricking someone into revealing personal or embarrassing information and sending it to others
Disclosing and disclosure	The act of providing information to another someone about an incident which may have involved sexual violence.
Discrimination	Any form of differential treatment that results in disadvantage, including imposing extra burdens, denying benefits, and/or limiting access to opportunities, based on one or more characteristics that an individual cannot change about themselves, known as prohibited grounds under the Ontario Human Rights Code, namely: age ancestry, colour, race citizenship, ethnic origin place of origin creed disability family status marital status (including single status) gender identity, gender expression receipt of public assistance (in housing only) record of offences (in employment only) sex (including pregnancy and breastfeeding) sexual orientation
Domestic or Intimate Partner Violence	The terms “domestic violence’ and ‘intimate partner violence’ are synonymous terms which are used to describe the physical, sexual and emotional abuse as well as sexual coercion and stalking by a current or former intimate partner. These violent and coercive behaviours are utilized to gain, cultivate, and prolong power and control over someone they are intimate with. An intimate partner is someone with whom you’ve had or have a close personal or sexual relationship with. This type of violence affects individuals of all different ages, gender identities, sexual orientations, abilities, races, religious background, income levels and quantity of education.
Formal report	A formal written request to investigate and address an incident that may have involved sexual violence.
Indecent exposure	Indecent exposure is when an individual exposes their genitals to other people (typically strangers caught off guard) in order to gain sexual satisfaction. Indecent exposure is also known as flashing or exhibitionism and is a criminal offense under the Criminal Code of Canada.
Informal report	A verbal account of an incident that may have involved sexual violence.
Intimate partner violence	Controlling, abusive and aggressive behavior in an interpersonal romantic relationship. It can happen to anyone. Intimate partner violence can also be referred to as dating violence and domestic violence. All are considered forms of sexual violence.
Sexual assault	Sexual assault is sexual touching of another person with any object or body part that is without consent or by force. Any sexual activity without consent is sexual assault. (Criminal Code of Canada, section 271, 272, 273). Sexual assault includes rape.
Sexual harassment	A course of vexatious comment, conduct and/or communication based on sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or gender expression, or orientation, that is known or should have been known to be unwelcome. Sexual harassment is a form of sexual violence and may include, but is not limited to: Sexual solicitation, advances, or remarks, including any situation where there is an implied or express promise of reward or benefit in return for sexual favours, and/or implied or express threat or act of reprisal if sexual favours are denied (e.g..coercion). Gender-based harassment that enforces traditional heterosexual gender norms, roles, or behaviours and is often used as a bullying tactic. Physical contact of a sexual nature (including sexual assault in the Criminal Code); suggestive or inappropriate comments or gestures (including songs and chants). Non-consensual posting of pictures, aggressive comments and slurs on social media. Inappropriate display of sexually suggestive pictures, posters, objects, graffiti. Sexual conduct that interferes with an individual’s dignity or privacy, such as voyeurism.
Sexual violence	Any sexual act or act targeting a person’s sexuality, gender identity or gender expression, whether the act is physical or psychological in nature, that is committed, threatened or attempted against a person without the person’s consent, and includes: sexual abuse sexual assault (including rape) sexual harassment stalking trafficking criminal harassment circulating degrading sexual imagery indecent exposure intimate partner violence voyeurism sexual exploitation
Stalking	A form of criminal harassment involving repeated conduct that is carried out over a period of time and that causes an individual to reasonably fear for their safety or the safety of someone known to them. Stalking does not require physical injury; it is enough if the conduct makes a person fearful.
Support worker	Staff members designated to receive disclosures and/or reports and to make getting help easier by providing aid to disclosers on behalf of the university.
Voyeurism	The act of deriving sexual gratification from the covert observation of others as they undress or engage in sexual activities. This may include recording such activity and distributing it. When the behaviour of the individual watching another is unwelcome, repeated and makes the observed person feel unsafe, it may also constitute criminal harassment.