Sara's Birthday Fundraiser for Rebels Against Sexual Assault

To celebrate my 21st birthday, I will be raising money to donate to Rebels Against Sexual Assault (RASA), a student organization at the University of Mississippi  that works to make their campus a safer place for everyone. Together through peer education, awareness, and prevention events, RASA aims to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual assault on college campuses, educate students about affirmative consent, support survivors, and end sexual and relationship violence. 

When I was just beginning my sophomore year at Ole Miss, I became a founding member of RASA: one of the best decisions I've ever made. This organization means more to me than I can express for so many reasons and I cannot think of a better way to celebrate another year of life than to give back to a group that has given me support, hope, and community for the past two years. 

There are countless reasons why you should donate to RASA, but these examples highlight the main challenges that elevate RASA's need for outside donations:

• It's hard to get money from the Ole Miss Associated Student Body's (ASB) student organization fund quickly; and when an instance of sexual violence or harassment goes public, it's important for RASA to hold an event to talk about the facts and what to do if you know something, are a survivor, and the resources that are available. It is hard to do this without instant funding so it would be extremely beneficial in these cases to have funds that belong to RASA and the Violence Prevention Office (VPO) that sponsors it.
• The state of Mississippi continues to cut funding for the university as a whole which decreases the VPO's overall funding that could be used to help RASA when ASB funding is not an option.
• The grant funding that created the position for the Assitant Director of Violence Prevention, without which RASA would lack a staff sponsor and other forms of direct institutional support, ran out in June of 2016. Thus, the VPO has had to use a considerable amount of its already reduced budget just to keep this position funded. 

Every penny helps; but even if you lack the financial means, sharing a link to this page to help spread the word is a gift in itself!  If you donate $21 or more, I'll send you a special card in the mail made with thanks and love (and ink and paper).