The reason for having men involved in rape prevention is to prevent rape. Women do not get raped - they are raped. They most likely will be raped by men they know and not by strangers. Victims cannot prevent rape. They can try to minimize the attack, and they can learn to defend themselves against people they know, but they can do very little to prevent the attack. Our program focuses on this distinction.

Tulane Men Against Rape is founded on several facts. While all men are capable or raping, most do not. More importantly, most would not force someone to have sex with them. This would mean being a criminal, and not a real lover. If we want to reduce rape, we must focus on what men can do to personally stop sexual assault. Men can be responsible for not raping someone. They can also stop perpetuating myths about sex and rape. Powerful men can openly pass on to women and other men what it means to be a man who is a good, responsive and responsible lover. Men can reinforce this message to their brothers, friends, fraternity brothers, patients, congregations, students, cadets, officers, sons and fellow athletes. This message can be given at every opportunity - in grade school and high school, in colleges, at parties, and in training camps - as it is woven through daily life.

As the men against rape message takes hold, the daughters, wives, sisters, friends, and lovers of secure men will actually become safer among men they know. If attacked, these women will be more likely to ask for support from knowledgeable men in their lives - support which will help speed their rape recovery. Women will know that they are not responsible for the aggressive acts of another. The responsibility rests with the aggressor, not with the victim.

Tulane Men Against Rape does not maintain that men are more effective in communicating the issue to men than women - we simply want to add our efforts to the efforts of women. We do not minimize the importance and ability of women to bring issues of sexual and physical abuse into the open and to communicate them to men. Together aware women and men are saying the contribution of men is powerful and incredibly pertinent to preventing the most common form of sexual assault. To say anything else is to take away the power of women to deal with the issue, and to deal with it alone, as many women feel they have been doing for a long time.

The message for everyone is: help has arrived.

Counseling referrals for sexually aggressive men. Tulane Men Against Rape includes among its members strong male role models - athletes, fraternity men, military cadets, even the Green Wave football coach. Trained role models can suggest to sexually aggressive men that they may need counseling support to examine inappropriate behavior and dangerous beliefs about sex. This neglected counseling, peer support, and programming option will present a balanced approach to the community by suggesting in the visual and printed media that such beliefs are unhealthy - and wrong.

Presentation and training agenda. The involvement of men in rape prevention means that informed men and women can actually reduce the number of attacks between acquaintances. The premise of our presentation is simple: we give men information about sexual assault. Such information features a full discussion of the issues, including:

We give presentations to anyone - all-male groups, all-female groups, groups of men and women, athletic groups, orientations, in training sessions, in classrooms, in residence halls, in church halls, even in bars if they would ask us.

Making TMAR participants into volunteers. Once we have given a presentation, we ask for volunteers, especially men who want to learn more and to teach this information to others. Although we have a small percentage of women volunteers, the program is designed for men. They set up booths, schedule programs, make calls, organize training and support each other. We select volunteers who are respected leaders from high risk groups - athletes, fraternities and military organizations. We give more in-depth information on the subjects listed above and we include a panel of survivors of sexual aggression to help the volunteers connect emotionally with the issue. We have a session on developing presentation skills and we teach volunteers how to refer victims and aggressors to helping resources.

Our audience - predominantly male students and staff members - is trained by knowledgeable and involved women and men. We do not bash men. We do provide powerful role models and help promote the ability of men to present a positive, effective prevention message.