(April 4, 2018) — In an effort to foster a campus culture of respect, graduate social work students at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), in collaboration with Beaks Up, Speak Up, will present a photo exhibit to bring awareness to perceptions related to sexual violence. The Photovoice exhibit is on display throughout the month of April at Gallery 23, located on the first floor of the Student Union on the UTSA Main Campus. The exhibit is free and open to the public, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The mission of the Photovoice project is to advocate for increased awareness and response to sexual violence within the UTSA community through empowerment and respect to diversity, using symbolic photographs and fostering dialogue.
The exhibit is the culmination of three Photovoice projects that UTSA masters of social work students completed in 2017. The pictures represent the social action that students could take to address sexual violence. The UTSA student organizers also recruited other college students in the San Antonio and Coastal Bend regions of Texas to contribute to the project. The exhibit features 14 photographs.
“The Photovoice exhibit represents the ideas, feelings and values students have about preventing campus sexual violence and fostering a campus culture of respect,” said Candace Christensen, UTSA assistant professor of social work. “These images generate emotional, intellectual, and artistic understandings of how the UTSA community can identify and prevent sexual violence. What is most important about this exhibit is that it represents the perspectives of university students who are actively addressing a campus community problem.”
This is just one example of Roadrunners inspiring a culture change against sexual assault and misconduct.
Hundreds of UTSA students, faculty and staff participated in It’s on Us Call to Action Day on April 3 on the UTSA Main Campus. More than 20 exhibitors provided information on sexual assault and sexual violence including resources on how to report incidents and support services available at UTSA for survivors. Several student groups featured interactive games to educate the UTSA community on the reality of sexual assault and the need to stand up against it. Many attendees signed a giant poster making the It’s On Us pledge, a personal commitment to keep women and men safe from sexual violence by becoming an active bystander.
