Bystander Intervention is an awareness program that strives to cultivate a community of responsibility concerning issues surrounding sexual assault and rape. It operates according to the idea that we have all been bystanders in our lives, and we will all be in situations where we are bystanders in the future. The choice, then, remains on whether we are going to be active bystanders who speak up and say something when we see situations that could potentially become violent or unsafe for members involved, or whether we will be passive bystanders who stand by and say nothing.

During the course of the academic year, specially trained students deliver an hour-long presentation to various Boston College student groups. Bystander Intervention has worked with a myriad of groups in the past, including performance groups, resident halls, club sports, student government, leadership clubs, and volunteer organizations, just to name a few. The Bystander Intervention presentation strives to help students:
    • Identify the realities of sexual assault and its definitions
    • Recognize inappropriate behaviors that perpetuate sexism
    • Understand their role in preventing situations that may lead to sexual assault
    • Create a plan with friends and execute the plan if a situation arises that
merits action
    • Follow their intuition and intervene when they witness a situation that
invokes uneasy feelings
    • Challenge their peers in a positive manner to change campus culture
    • Utilize professional bystanders and available resources if necessary