In Week 2, Emmanuel will hold a week of events that intend to raise awareness of, and take a stand against, sexual violence. The programme follows in the wake of Emmanuel’s official establishment of a zero tolerance policy, alongside an updated Respect and Dignity policy. These successes represent the culmination of assiduous efforts from several generations of students and ECSU (Emmanuel College Student Union) representatives.

ECSU Vice President Alina Khakoo commented that “It took a large number of people a huge amount of effort to make this important step, and it therefore seemed fitting to mark this feat by raising as much awareness as possible of the new policy, and the sexual violence it aims to combat. The events are also a celebration of the solidarity and open-mindedness that members of Emma have shown in drafting this policy."

"From our inspiring and supportive Master, Dame Fiona Reynolds, to successive Women’s Officers, the students who have been personally affected by the previous lack of college policy, and the Porters who have provided important pastoral care to survivors, it has been a real privilege to observe the college coming together for this important cause.”

Current Women’s Officer Roberta Huldisch outlined and celebrated the progress, commenting that "the college now offers clear guidelines and rights to anyone who decides to report harassment or assault. This will help to support and protect survivors more efficiently, and increase accountability. We worked with an incredibly dedicated team of students to make the policy as powerful and as useful as possible. Some of them had previously suffered from a lack of clear college guidelines on sexual assault. The process of working with College to draft the new documents has been one of mutual respect and openness and we are extremely pleased that the policy has been ratified so soon after discussions began. We hope and believe that it will increase the safety and welfare of generations of future students."

Kick-starting the events, a photography campaign entitled 'Emma Says NO to Sexual Harassment' will run throughout the week, featuring staff and students from all corners of college life. The results will be exhibited from Saturday 2nd May, and that evening Dame Fiona Reynolds will introduce a series of short talks opening discussion on the personal and societal repercussions of sexual violence, and the importance of speaking out. 

The event will be hosted by Pavan Amara, co-founder of the My Body Back Project, alongside current and previous CUSU Women’s Officers Amelia Horgan and Lauren Steele. They will be joined by second year student Francesca Ebel, who has written openly about her own experience of sexual violence, and Olivia Smith, a lecturer in Criminology at Anglia Ruskin University who has conducted research to show how such violence is dealt with by the Criminal Justice System. More information about the event and its speakers can be found on the Facebook page.

The evening is free, and will be followed by a drinks reception alongside the displayed results of the photo campaign. It will be open to all students as well as members of the public. Amelia Horgan commented that "It's really important to think about the forces and power systems that encourage us to keep quiet about our experiences. The myths of sexual violence as rare, random, shameful and the fault of those who experience it, not only damage survivors, they also enable sexual violence to take place at all. This is why events like this are so important – we need to fight the dangerous ideas and power structures that enable sexual violence."