Anti-Rape Campaign Reaches Out to Men, Not Women

A coalition of sexual assault groups in Edmonton, Canada has launched “Don’t Be That Guy,” a new public awareness campaign that targets men. Campaign organizers say they wanted to go with something different from rape prevention tips for women.

By focusing their message on men ages 18 to 24, the coalition is hoping to get men to think before they become perps, unwitting or not. Their main bullet point: that a drunk woman who isn’t conscious can’t actually consent to sex. It does seem that many men (and some women, too) don’t get this simple fact. Maybe the campaign will help.

The Vancouver Sun provides details on the content of the new ads:

In one ad, a man is helping a woman to a black car at night, and text underneath the photo reads: “Just because you help her home … doesn’t mean you get to help yourself.” In another ad, a woman in a black dress is passed out, face down on a couch, with three liquor bottles lined up on the floor nearby. The text reads: “Just because she isn’t saying no … doesn’t mean she’s saying yes.”

The ads will appear in print, on public transit, and also above the urinals in the bathrooms of bars. The bathroom idea seems really smart: maybe guys will look down and think twice.