By Samuel Hoffman, Contributing Writer
Susquehanna’s common reading lecture featured Keith E. Edwards who presented “The Power of Consent” to follow along with the 2019 common reading theme of ‘the power of stories’ on Sept. 5 in Weber Chapel auditorium.
Edwards co-wrote “Putting My Man Face On” with Susan R. Jones for Susquehanna’s 2019- 2020 common reading anthology, “The Power of Stories.”
“Putting My Man Face On” discussed how people wear masks in attempts to fit into an idealized version of their society.
“The text delves into expectations such as being unemotional, aggressive, and competitive and participants in the study focus on how these expectations are incorporated in their lives through society,” said senior Lindsay Kovac, one of the lecture organizers.
The story specifically discussed the meaning of the word “masculinity” and the stereotypical gender roles for men.
“’Putting My Man Face On’ discusses society’s expectations of men, on the grounds of a college campus, and how men learn to understand themselves through these set expectations,” Kovac said.
Edwards not only focused on masculinity and gender roles, but also discussed how they play into the issue of sexual violence. Edwards took the stage after introductions from Catherine Dent, director of the common reading anthology, and Samantha Profitt, the director of first-year experience.
He used the lecture as an opportunity to speak at length with the first-year class about the importance of consent and preventing sexual violence on Susquehanna’s campus.
He began by explaining a misconception of the term sexual violence and said that it is really an umbrella term for the words it often replaces, which include sexual harassment, assault and rape.
Edwards then shared some disturbing statistics.
He said that 1 in 4 women experiences sexual assault or an attempt while in college and 84 percent of them knew their assailant. Edwards also said that 84 percent of assailants did not know that they were perpetrators.
Edwards shared one reason that men are unaware that they commit such acts is that it has become embedded in our culture. Assailants tend to objectify women and see them as inferior, sometimes through other forms of discrimination.
Edwards also discussed the importance of affirmative and completely voluntary consent with the audience.
He spoke about intervention methods when consent is not freely given and how different situations required different intervention methods. Edwards shared with the audience the hope he had for a world without sexual violence.
“This needs to be a place where you can thrive and grow,” Edwards said.
