I am sure you know by now that universities don’t exactly know what to do when a student is raped by another student. Often the rape is not reported to authorities, dismissed or grossly mishandled. In the case of Emma Sulkowicz, Columbia University has not expelled her rapist. In fact the university has declared her rapist, “not responsible.” Emma must live with the fear of having to encounter her rapist everyday and her university has done little to help. For her thesis, Emma is making a bold statement by carrying her mattress around with her on campus, even to class.
In the video Emma says, “Rape can happen anywhere. For me, I was raped in my own dorm bed.” She is committed to this performance piece for however long it takes. Whether that is a day or until she graduates, as long as Emma is forced to attend the same school as her rapist, she will remind everyone at her university of what was done to her.
Art can be therapeutic for the artist but it can also force the viewer to rethink or take a closer look at what they are viewing. Emma’s work is powerful, brave and heartbreaking. Hopefully this will give her university cause to listen.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=l9hHZbuYVnU&w=590]
Columbia Student Is Taking Her Mattress To Class Until Her Rapist Is Expelled
