The Hunting Ground

The Hunting Ground is a documentary that describes sexual assault cases at various colleges and universities, clearly pointing out an ongoing pattern at each campus. Students shared their personal stories and addressed issues with policies that claimed the college/university took sexual assault seriously. Yet, students who shared their firsthand accounts of experiences as victims of rape discussed how the actions of campus workers contradicted the actual policies in place.

Shocking statistics were presented, like the fact that one in five women in college are sexually assaulted. According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics in 2001, "Among college women, nine out of 10 knew their attacker."

Pace University students saw this documentary at an event last week and were asked to share their reactions. Jonathan Alvarez, junior and communications major said, “The documentary shined light on a topic we have all heard about but the facts hit close to home when you realize the sheer amount of cases happening on campuses nationwide. I feel the movie was great for this reason, and hope it leads to raising more awareness on sexual assault.”

One of the controversies mentioned was by a student named Erica Kinsman who said that she was raped by Jameis Winston, who was drafted to be the quarterback for the Tampa Bay Bucaneers NFL team on Thursday night. However, Winston has not been charged in the case. Prior to the NFL draft, Winston was a quarterback for Florida State University. Kinsman said that Winston raped her off campus in 2012.

A Pace University student from Miami, Florida said, "Students who attend Florida State University worship him like a god. It's sickening."

There were several cases where students were ignored, even by the police. The documentary also shed light on a conflict of interest, which explained why presidents at different colleges and universities don't want star athletes or fraternities to get into trouble. Fraternity alumni often donate and adding money to the budget is a top priority for presidents. In the end, more and more victims have suffered.

“I loved the movie. It was very eye opening," Vinona Rugova, a sophomore majoring in marketing and minoring in philosophy said. "It brings light to an important issue.”

Students received a pamphlet that had "Sexual Assault: You are Not Alone" on the cover. This is Pace University's guide to options, resources and support for students on the New York City and Westchester campus. Also included in the pamphlet is advice about how to help a friend, myths and facts about sexual assault, and safety tips.

Another student who had positive feedback about the documentary is Kayla Graniero, junior and communications major at Pace University. “I thought the movie was a great example of very necessary exposure to a difficult topic to talk about amongst our age group. It was very frightening to become aware of the number of universities that treat sexual assault with such discrimination and heinous discretion.”

To see it live in theaters, bring a group, host a screening, take action, or donate, visit:

http://www.thehuntinggroundfilm.com/