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THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 18,2014
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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Project Not Asking For It created on campus
MIRANDA DAVIS
@MirandaDavisUDK
Ally Jones, a sophomore from Plano, Texas, and Kathryn Everett, a sophomore from Manhattan, created Project Not Asking For It at the University.
Two students have created a KU branch of Project Not Asking For It, a student-led organization that creates videos at universities that raise awareness about victim blaming. They released their video last week. The Kansan sat down for a Q&A with founders Ally Jones a sophomore from Plano, Texas, and Kathryn Everett, a sophomore from Manhattan.
MIRANDA DAVIS/KANSAN
Kansan: First off, what is the project?
UDK: Why were you inspired to do this at the University?
Kathryn Everett: Project Not Asking For It is an organization that a student started at Wesleyan University to spread awareness that no one is asking to be sexually assaulted, no matter what they're wearing, how they're dancing, the circumstances, it doesn't matter. A few other universities around the U.S. made videos, like the one at Wesleyan, and we decided to bring it to KU.
Ally Jones: The reason that the student started it at Wesleyan was because she kept hearing people make excuses for why they think people had been sexually assaulted. Saying stuff like, "Oh, well she was asking for it because her skirt was too short," or "He put himself in that position because he was dancing this way" and everyone says stuff like that without even noticing it. It's not as much as a group that's focused on changing policy, but a group that's focused on changing the community and the societal response to sexual assault.
KE and AI: One of her friends that goes to Columbia was in the video and we saw it on Facebook and thought, "Why not?"
UDK: When did you start planning this?
KE: Over the summer, around June and July.
AI: We emailed the girl who started this at Wesleyan and she was very helpful and supportive.
KE: She was excited that such a large university wanted to hop on.
AI: I think were one of the first large, sizeable universities. Because [the Wesleyan founder] is up in Connecticut, and a lot of the northeastern schools have done it, but they are smaller liberal arts colleges. Ours is the first big, public university.
UDK: Did all of the sexual assault news that has happened change your message at all?
KE: I think our original message has stayed the same, but I think it's reached more people because of the controversy.
UDK: What do you hope is the KU community response?
KE: We hope they're supportive and see where we're coming from and agree with our stance —
AI: I think it also helped us focus in. We've considered getting involved in some of the pushes for policy change... But I think it helped us realize that our message would probably be more effective in more of a community, societal aspect. Our message is the same but it helped us hone in on the community focus.
relate to. Everyone is either directly or indirectly connected to sexual assault, whether it's happened to them or someone of their friends. I just hope they can find a place in our message.
AJ: — and feel included. That's what I really hope is perceived about the group. That this is a message that everyone can
Jones and Everett created
the video with the help of the Honors Program, Students United for Reproductive and Gender Equality (SURGE) and the Emily Taylor Center. Three film students, Savannah Rodgers, Dongjun Lee and Gabriel O'Conner, directed, edited and filmed the video for the
group. The students plan to continue work with the group and have more information on their Facebook page: Project Not Asking for It, University of Kansas.
Edited by Logan Schlossberg
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Cody Christensen, a sophomore from Topeka with the Dole Institute, shakes hands with Bob Dole at the KU booth in the Meadowlark Building at the Kansas State Fair on Sept. 7 in Hutchinson.
Dole resumes Kansas homecoming tour
DODGE CITY — Former U.S.
Sen. Bob Dole returns to Kansas
next week for the latest of several
planned trips to his home state
this year.
The 91-year-old Russell native lives in Washington, D.C., and
is making the homecoming tour to greet longtime friends and supporters throughout the state. He spends an hour at each stop, chatting with fans and old acquaintances.
Greensburg, Ashland, Meade and Liberal the following day.
On Sept. 24, Dole will visit Hugoon, Elkhard, Johnson City and Ulysses. He plans to conclude the tour Sept. 25 with stops in Satanta and Cimarron.
Next week's trip is Dole's eighth of the year and will take him to southwest Kansas. The tour begins the evening of Sept. 22 in Dodge City, with stops in Kinsley,
Associated Press
Poverty rate drops for the first time since 2006
White House officials cheered the positive information in the census release.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — The poverty rate in the United States has dropped for the first time since 2006, bringing a bit of encouraging news about the nation's economy as President Barack Obama and Congress gear up for midterm elections.
"There is reason to believe that this progress has continued into 2014, as the labor market has strengthened and millions have gained health insurance coverage," said Jason Furman and Betsey Stevenson, members of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. "At the same time, the data also offer a clear illustration of the large amount of work that remains to strengthen the middle class in the wake of the worst recession since the Great Depression."
The Census Bureau, in its annual look at poverty in the United States, said that the poverty rate in 2013 was 14.5 percent, down from 15 percent in 2012. The decrease in the poverty rate was attributed to the growth in year-round employment by 2.8 million jobs in the United States, government officials said.
The median household income for families was $65,587 in 2013, and $31,178 nonfamily households, which also was not statistically different from the 2012 levels. However, census officials said that income is 8 percent less than it was in
2007, the year before the United States entered the recession.
States entered the recession. Officials also say that the number of children under 18 in poverty declined from the previous year for the first time since 2000.
The number of children in poverty dropped from 21.8 percent in 2012 to 19.9 percent in 2013, and the number of children in poverty also
"...the data also offer a clear illustration of the large amount of work that remains to strengthen the middle class. "
JASON FURMAN &
BETSEY STEVENSON
Members of White House
Council of Economic Advieors
declined from 16.1 million to 14.7 million.
The official poverty level is based on a government calculation that includes only income before tax deductions. It excludes capital gains or accumulated wealth, such as home ownership. As a result, the rate takes into account the effects of some government benefits, such as unemployment compensation. It does not factor in noncash government aid such as tax credits and food stamps.
A family of four is considered to be living in poverty if it brings in less than $23,830 in a year. A person is considered to be living in poverty if he or she makes less than $11,890.
The report also said that Hispanics were the only major race or ethnic group to have a statistically significant change in their poverty rate and the number of people in poverty. In 2013, the poverty rate for Hispanics was 23.5 percent, a decrease from 2012's 25.6 percent. And the number of Hispanics in poverty decreased from 13.6 million to 12.7 million. In addition, income for Hispanic households increased by 3.5 percent between 2012 and 2013.
Officials also said the percentage of people without health insurance coverage for the entire 2013 calendar year was 13.4 percent, which equaled 42 million people. Census officials said those numbers cannot be compared with previous year numbers because they changed the way they asked the question on their surveys.
Asians had the highest mediain household income in 2013 at $67,065, followed by non-Hispanic whites at $58,270, Hispanics at $40,963 and blacks at $34,598.
The poverty rate for non-Hispanic whites was 9.6 percent in 2013, and there were 18.7 million non-Hispanic whites in poverty. The 2013 poverty rate was 27.2 percent for blacks and 10.5 percent for Asians, and there were 11 million blacks and 1.8 million Asians in poverty.
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