Next month's social justice hour will take place on Nov. 2 at 6:30 p.m. in the Student Center Forum Room
Editor's note: Brianna Kirkham is the Online Managing Editor for the Unified Media iDesk.
Sexually transmitted infection testing isn’t covered by Ball State’s student health fee, but Student Government Association’s Secretary of Social Justice wants to change that.
Brianna Kirkham addressed the issue at SGA’s first social justice hour Oct. 5, which focused on sexual assault. She brought in Allison Wynbissinger, BSU victim advocate, who said sexually transmitted infection (STI) testing can cost upwards of $100.
Kirkham plans to introduce the issue of STI testing to different members of SGA and other officials. She wants to make it more accessible, either through coverage by the student medical fee or through promotion of off-campus clinics.
“Some people can listen to ... a really horrific story, and be like, ‘Yeah, that sucks. You know, someone should do something about that,'" Kirkham said. " And I am like, ‘Uh, no. I should do something about this. We have to change.'"
She said the discussion that followed her presentation showed her people care about the issue of STI testing.
“I was impressed by everyone’s inputs and that they did have a lot of things to say about it,” Kirkham said. “Now, I think this is just like our first step to realize, like, what can we do with this now?”
SGA President Jack Hesser also spoke at the event, beginning with a monologue about how he was sexually assaulted when he was a freshman. Kirkham followed Hesser’s performance with a rhetorical criticism, which focused on the “This is Not a Rape” video by Emma Sulkowicz. Sulkowicz is known for carrying her mattress around the campus of Columbia University to protest her alleged rapist’s continued attendance at Columbia.
Sophomore Jessica Ratel-Khan, a public communications and political science major, attended the event and said she found the program to be engaging and welcoming. She said it showed sexual assault can affect anyone.
“I thought Jack performing was really, really brave,” Ratel-Khan said. “I thought it set a great tone for showing that even as someone who seems like he has it all together—like, he’s president of the student body, he won Homecoming king—it can still happen to anyone, and so I thought that was really brave and admirable that he was able to perform that.”
Each social justice hour will take place on the first Monday of each month at the Student Center. Kirkham will find performers and speakers for whatever topic students choose between meetings, and said students can recommend topics by email even if they didn't attend a previous session.
“This is just a safe space for students,” Kirkham said. “If students are looking to go to a formal lecture to take notes at, this isn’t it. This is meant to be an informal dialogue that they should be comfortable participating in.”
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