Sexual Harassment can only begin to be eliminated when we talk with someone about our experiences. If we remain silent, Sexual harassment will continue to be perceived as a personal problem rather than as a social problem. Silence often keeps us feeling guilty rather than violated. Sexual harassment is not always a sexually motivated act. Typically it represents an assertion of power expressed in a sexual manner.
Individuals experiencing sexual harassment are aware of the power the harasser wields.
Sexual harassment continues to be a serious social problem. Surveys show that a majority of women today, at one time or another, have been sexually harassed. This behavior typically is not aimed at eliciting sexual cooperation, but like racial harassment, it contaminates the learning work environment and has no place at Cal Poly. These behaviors in isolation do not constitute sexual harassment as defined by AB 93-1. They are prohibited by federal, state, CSU and Cal Poly policies on discrimination.