The White House on Friday launched an awareness campaign to help put an end to sexual assault on college campuses in America.

According to the White House website, President Barack Obama joined Vice President Joe Biden in launching the campaign. "It's On Us asks everyone -- men and women across America -- to make a personal commitment to step off the sidelines and be part of the solution to campus sexual assault," read the website .

"As far as we’ve come, the fact is that from sports leagues to pop culture to politics, our society still does not sufficiently value women," Obama said.

"We still don’t condemn sexual assault as loudly as we should. We make excuses. We look the other way. The message that sends can have a chilling effect on young men and women" he continued.


"Sexual violence isn't just a crime—it's a civil rights violation." —President Obama #ItsOnUs
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) September 19, 2014

The White House website also reported in a factsheet that since the beginning of Obama's administration, the President and Vice President have made it a priority to root out sexual violence wherever it exists," especially in our nation’s schools".

In April 2011, Biden and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan introduced comprehensive guidance to help colleges and universities nationwide better understand their obligations under federal civil rights laws to prevent and respond to sexual assault on campus.

Friday's initiative went viral on Twitter, with the hash tag #ItsOnUs calling for more people to take the pledge and end sexual assaults.

Well known figures such as Kerry Washington Jon Hamm, Rose Byrne, Questlove and others joined Obama and Biden in support of the campaign in a YouTube video.



https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/111218.aspx