One quarter of female college students in the United States are victims of attempted or completed sexual assault according to the National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence.
Faculty and students alike will spread awareness of the ongoing battle with harassment and violence today at the second Annual Gray-Torres Conference on Interpersonal Violence.
Co-organizer and Interim Director of the Women’s Resource Center Summer Little said the theme of this year’s conference is “It Begins with Me.” She said she wants to focus on giving bystanders the tools to intervene in a violent situation.
“The conference was originally about domestic violence and stalking, but we realized that we need to include verbal and sexual assault as well, because there are always points where an intervention could be made,” she said. “But it’s on a continuum; the problem only gets worse once it starts.”
Co-organizer and chair of the English department Gail Houston said the conference formed in response to the murder of UNM professor Hector Torres and student Stefania Gray.
Torres, 54, and Gray, 43, were found dead in Torres’ home on March 8, 2010. The victims were shot to death by Ralph Montoya, Gray’s ex-boyfriend. Montoya confessed to murdering the couple the next day and was sentenced to 25 years in prison in October 2011.
Little said keynote speaker, Mike Dilbeck, will present the details of his Every|Day Hero Campaign. She said Dilbeck is the founder of the campaign and teaches people to recognize and intervene in interpersonal violence situations.
“The Every|Day Hero Campaign further emphasizes the exact message we’re trying to convey,” she said. “Anyone can be a hero, anyone can intervene and stop a violent situation before it’s too late.”
Little emphasized the importance of male involvement and awareness. She said Pi Kappa Alpha (PIKE) fraternity members sponsored Dilbeck’s coming to speak at UNM, and that the fraternity’s sponsorship is a starting-point for that effort.
“Not all men commit violence, but all men can be involved in the efforts to end it,” she said. “It’s so important for men to step forward as allies, and the men of PIKE have helped us tremendously.”
Pi Kappa Alpha member and ASUNM Attorney General Greg Montoya-Mora said the fraternity members do their philanthropy through the Women’s Resource Center by promoting, organizing and volunteering in various events hosted by the Women’s Resource Center. He said the fraternity believes it is important for everyone to spread awareness and help put an end to harassment and violence.
“Fraternities often have a bad reputation for our moral values,” Montoya-Mora said. “This is an effort to show that our values truly lie in being gentlemen.”
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Houston said student involvement played a major role in the organization of the conference this year.
“Students have helped us broaden our focus and offer a new perspective,” she said. “Instead of focusing on domestic violence and stalking, the conference now includes every type of violence, from verbal harassment to sexual assault and teaches people how to intervene in every situation.”
Student volunteer Elizabeth Thayer said she became involved because she wants to help spread awareness. She said she wants every student to have a better understanding of how to deal with and prevent violence.
“Every student needs to be aware of their surroundings because there’s violence all around us,” she said. “We all need to know what we can do to help and make sure we never lose another UNM member.”
Little said involvement includes more than the student body. She said the conference is co-sponsored by the UNM Police Department, 2nd Judicial District Attorney’s Office, Verizon Wireless, Theta Nu Xi sorority, the Rape Crisis Center, Domestic Violence Resource Center and the Agora Crisis Center. She said donations have been received from UNM President David Schmidly, the Athletics Department, the Alfonso Ortiz Center, the Women’s Resource Center and the English department.
“The conference involves everyone on campus and in our community,” she said. “It cost about $8,000, but the money has all been donated.”
Little said the conference will include a number of guest speakers, a panel discussion and poetry readings and will cover all types of violence and how to intervene in every kind of violent situation. She said the conference will also include a film screening of “Telling Amy’s Story,” a film about a former Verizon employee who was murdered by her husband.
“The film is a deconstruction of Amy’s case and points out places in her life where interventions could have happened,” she said. “It encompasses the exact message we are trying to send out.”
