By Atlas Novack and Jennifer Eden
The Youth Activist Institute is currently hosting rape prevention workshops in Santa Monica lead by a young Santa Monican who decided to change the devastating event of being raped herself into a transformative experience for others.
21-year-old Raven Bennett graduated from Santa Monica High School in 2013 before heading east for college, where the incident occurred.
“I sat and thought about what I could do. There was this scholarship program at my school called the Lang opportunity scholarship program,” Bennett told Westside Today
Bennet secured a $10,000 grant to start the Youth Activist Institute, which is designed to equip participants with the skills and knowledge to address the issue of sexual violence in their community.
“My emphasis is on prevention education,” Bennet explained. “The earlier the education happens, the better. With all these negative ideas and expectations out there, I think it’s important that we work to prevent these tragedies from happening.”
Teaming up with the Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center’s Rape Treatment Center, Bennet turned the grant into a 14-day workshop at the Santa Monica Police Activities League (PAL), where teens can attend one, or all of the days.
“We are working with Raven to offer content expertise for her program; our contribution to the PAL program is very similar to the rape prevention education programs we offer to middle school And high school student throughout the community,” explained Harriet Kerr, director of prevention and community education for the Rape Treatment Center at UCLA Medical Center, Santa Monica.
The staff conducting the workshop sessions are all mental health professionals, and all have specializations in sexual assault, Kerr added. “This program was Raven’s idea, in that there is a lot of emphasis on college rape, but that doesn’t mean younger adolescents aren’t at risk.”
Subject matter ranges from how to prevent sexual assault in the community, how to diffuse situations, how to deal with rejection, what to do if you see someone about to be assaulted; and is important for both teen boys and girls to attend, Bennet said.
The program is discussion-based, meaning that participants are actively engaged in conversations about gender stereotypes, consent and personal boundaries, bystanders’ intervention and how to help a friend, and social activism.
Bennett said that she aims to enact change on a larger scale than just treating rape; she aims to help prevent it, by teaching young people what to do in a situation that could easily spin out of control.
The program is currently underway and runs until July 22.
Sessions are designed for youth aged 14 to 17 and open attendance is welcome – Monday-Friday from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
For more details or to sign up, email youthactivistinstitute@gmail.com.
