New It’s On Us PSA Targets Texting Language

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It’s On Us, an organization dedicated to preventing and promoting awareness of sexual assault, released a new PSA about the issue that targets the language people use in conversation regarding sexual or potentially sexual interactions with others.

The 30-second piece looks at a conversation between two unaware males, one of whom was telling the other about an interaction he had at a party with a female.

“Hey man,” it reads. “Remember that drunk chick I was talking to at the party last night?”

At this point, the PSA jumps in to correct the male, suggesting “targeting” instead of “talking to.”

The PSA, appropriately titled, “Autocorrect,” continued to jump in every time the two men used language that, in their view, resembled rape culture.

“Encourage” was switched to “force,” “into it” was changed to “worried,” and “she wanted you” was changed to “she wanted you to stop.”

“It’s on us to intervene in sexual assault, because we can,” says the voice over as more texts scroll.

The PSA ends with the main character saying the girl’s friend knocked on his door and started “running her mouth,” which was corrected to “asking if she’s OK.” After his friend called her a “bitch,” which was corrected to “hero,” the male showed his frustration by saying the friend ruined a “good time,” which was simply corrected to, “rape.”

It’s On Us is a national campaign to end sexual assault. The University of New Haven in partnership with the Undergraduate Student Government Association is hosting a series of roundtable discussions to talk about what students can do to prevent sexual assault.

“These are the facts: 1 in 5 women and 1 in 16 men are raped on college campuses and it’s our responsibility to create an environment where everyone feels, and actually is, safe — and to take that responsibility seriously,” said Chris Patterson, a member of the Student Advisory Committee for It’s On Us.