In the time it will take to give a one-hour presentation about the statistics of violent sex crimes, 20 women across the United States will have been victimized.

In response to these statistics, NIU’s Men Against Sexual and Interpersonal Violence is presenting a male-geared peer-education program entitled, “How to Help a Sexual-Assault Survivor: What Men Can Do” today at 5 p.m. in the Latino Resource Center.

MASIV and Voices For Change, a peer-education group, want to increase the audience’s empathy for sexual assault victims, lower acceptance of rape myths that hold the victim responsible for the attacker’s actions and decrease the likelihood that audience members will commit sexual assault.

NIU psychologist Troy Melendez is the coordinator of MASIV and is also responsible for today’s program. Melendez and NIU student counselor Tim Paquette are responsible for the program, which is intended to shock and inform by using unorthodox and refreshing tactics instead of loading listeners with only facts and figures.

“It’s a new program that addresses empathy in men toward victims of sexual assault,” Melendez said. “We don’t want men to feel as though we are accusing them of being future rapists. Rather, the goal of this program is to show men what it feels like to be the victim in a sexual assault incident.”

Though the program is aimed toward men, anyone interested in participating is welcome. The scientifically-investigated presentation will include a performance designed to coax an emotional response from audience members.

“How do we get men to empathize with what it’s like to be a woman in that situation?” said Paquette. “That’s hard to do, but try to make a personal connection to men, and you will get more effective results.”

“My anticipation is that this is going to generate a lot of buzz, both negative and positive,” said Melendez. “Some people are going to have a big problem with this, and others are going to think this is the best thing we’ve ever done.”