When the sexual assault prevention group Culture of Respect attended the Dartmouth Summit on Sexual Assault in July to promote its forthcoming website, the group went by a different name. The nonprofit passed out business cards and marketing all emblazoned with the phrase "No Means No."
For the last two decades, that's been the slogan of choice for sexual assault prevention efforts, and just a few months ago it seemed like a perfect fit for the new organization. But in the weeks leading up to No Means No's official launch, the organization began having second thoughts.
"The swiftly evolving conversation about defining sexual assault signaled to us that we needed to reframe our name as something more positive," said Allison Korman, the group's executive director. "And it’' even possible that 'No means no' will be an outdated or irrelevant concept in 10 years. Students may not have even heard of the phrase by then."
That's because at a growing number of colleges, "No means no" is out, and "Yes means yes" is in. And it's more than just revising an old slogan -- from coast to coast, colleges are rethinking how they define consent on their campuses.
Read more at Inside Higher Ed: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/10/17/colleges-across-country-adopting-affirmative-consent-sexual-assault-policies