New Trier students are preparing for college with ACTs, college counselors and shopping lists, but most aren’t ready for the real risk of sexual assault on college campuses.

“The Hunting Ground,” a movie directed by Kirby Dick, attempts to raise awareness about rape and sexual assault on college campuses. The documentary exposes shocking information about the truth behind many college scandals.

Ariell Bachman, an English teacher and senior girl’s advisor, chose to show her advisery “The Hunting Ground” after seeing a free screening of it at the University of Chicago last spring. She thought her advisery would benefit from seeing it.

Bachman’s advisery had been having ongoing discussions on gender identity and the expectations of women in society, so the movie was just part of the broader topic.

Bachman prefaced the movie through discussions with the administration and parents.
“I told parents that if they wanted their daughter to opt out of the film–because it can be a trigger for some students–then that was totally fine. I was pretty transparent,” Bachman said.

While she encouraged her advisees to take advantage of the opportunity, she was still open to individual cases, in which the movie might not be as beneficial.

Overall, Bachman found that her advisees had a very good response to the movie.
“Everyone was emotionally impacted,” Bachman said, “it may have stirred some things up, but those things needed to be talked about and examined.”

While it’s not frequently talked about, sexual assault is a huge problem. According to a 2014 MIT survey, 17 percent of undergraduate women on college campuses have experienced unwanted sexual encounters.

The film has the power to make a change, according to Bachman. “My advisees feel like they can handle themselves better and help their peers, too.” The girls feel empowered, having gained the knowledge they need to be prepared and protected in the real world.

At this point, Bachman is the only adviser to have shown the movie to her advisery, but she said, “I know a couple of other female advisers want to show the film.”

Liette Brisebois, a junior girls advisor, has not shown “The Hunting Ground” to her advisery, but said, “I think it would be a very appropriate topic to talk about in advisery. It would really raise awareness and show what is known about what goes on at college campuses.”

Brisebois’s only concern is the fear tactic that many people discussing the topic often resort to.
“I think culturally there’s a lot of scare tactics that are going on,” she said, and that’s something she’d like to avoid exposing her advisery to.

Brisebois doesn’t want anything to cause her girls to live in fear while in the real world.
Junior Hannah Shushunov had some concerns about the movie, too.

“It’s a really heavy topic for advisory,” Shushunov said. “It might make people feel uncomfortable.”
While the movie may have some potential problems, Bachman thought the viewing audience should be expanded. “I think it is an unfortunate reality that these kinds of things only end up being talked about in girls adviseries or with women, because, of course, it’s a male issue, too,” Bachman said.

We need to change “what it means to be a male so that it doesn’t include objectifying women’s bodies and taking them for your own,” Bachman said.

Bachman’s ideas are well justified. According to the Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center, 99 percent of perpetrators of sexual assault are males.

However, boys and men can also be victimized. According to the Rape Crisis Center, 10 percent of all victims are men. So, the film could begin a conversation in boys adviseries and prepare them.
Brisebois agreed whole heartedly. “I think it would be a great thing that could be shared with boys and girls adviseries,” she said.

However, logistically, making the movie a school wide phenomenon has it’s challenges. In order for it to be really beneficial, Brisebois said, it would require preparation.

“For example, I would have to be paired with a male colleague. I’d need a man’s perspective on the issue.” But, if it was successful, Brisebois said it would be a really powerful experience.
Junior Kameron Valdivia agreed. While he acknowledged that there’s always a risk in showing something so controversial, he said, “I think it would be beneficial for anyone to watch a movie like that.”

The unfortunate reality is that sexual violence does exist in our society, so integrating “The Hunting Ground” into adviseries can add awareness and a sense of community for both boys and girls.
“You should watch it with somebody, because it is serious, and it’s deeply devastating,” Bachman said.