Julie Thompson, substance abuse programs coordinator at the University of Northern Iowa, watched the show with interest. She's not sure just how many young girls are battered each year by boyfriends, but Thompson does know there's an increase in the number of women reporting such incidents. She says a good deal of the problem is the manner in which boys and girls are socialized. And it can happen at very early ages. Lately we've seen some very prominent cases of girls being harassed in junior high and high school.
Men have to be part of the solution.
Instead of relating to men as if they all are batterers, our program uses the bystander approach. Men have more power in our society, so they are in a better position to challenge this behavior. We're hoping we can change this culture, so peers will police one another. No one would engage in violence against women because they would ostracized. Essentially, those involved with the project will be gathering campus information, and spreading the word that non-violence is the norm.