At the end of November, HeForShe, the Reims-based student association, organised a week-long sexist and sexual violence awareness event. The aim of the weeks event is to help raise awareness of the number of victims of such violence and also to learn how to react to it.

The announcement of the second confinement came in full preparation for the 2020 edition. But faced with the importance of the stakes, the HeForShe Reims team bounced back and digitized the event.!

“We were somewhat disappointed for a few days, but sexist and sexual violence are such important issues that we soon regained our motivation and decided to switch the event to a digital format. And this gave us the opportunity to open the event to students on the Rouen Campus, which was great!” says Emmanuelle Muffat, President, HeForShe Reims.

Three workshop for sensibilisation and training were organised:

• Awareness-raising workshop on the consequences of sexist and sexual violence:

Led by Emmanuelle Muffat, Jeanne Simon and Amandine Ancien, Registered Nurse on the Reims Campus, this workshop looked at the different post aggression phases and the short, medium and long term physical, psychological and social consequences.

“I was delighted that HeForShe asked me to take part in this workshop,” says Amandine Ancien. “Indeed, raising awareness among students on this sensitive subject is a really good idea. Working with the association members, who are all so actively involved, to prepare and then present the issues went really well. During the workshop, I could sense the interest amongst the participants and my presence as a nurse was well appreciated. Finally, this also gave the opportunity to highlight the Care Centre as a place where NEOMA students can come and talk and receive care.”

• Bullying and cyber-bullying awareness workshop:

From the outset, the theme was really brought to life with the screening of a 360-degree film in which the 56 participants became the victims of harassment and violence. At the end, the participants were asked to share their feelings, their emotions, how they may or may not have reacted… HandsAway, the association running the workshop, then reminded participants of the key points concerning these issues: what the law says, how to identify these forms of harassment and what resources are available in response.

• Training Workshop on sexist and sexual violence in the workplace

Élisabeth Chaudière, NEOMA graduate and head of Ekiwork, ran this highly interactive workshop on the various sexist stereotypes that often lead to discrimination in the workplace. Legal definitions, effective response mechanisms and available resources were then recalled. The 29 participants were actively involved throughout and shared many of their own experiences, especially in the school environment.

The 3 workshops were highly appreciated by the participants, whose feedback to the organisers was extremely positive, with the particular mention that, among other things, they had the freedom to really express themselves!

At the same time, the organisers are well aware of the importance of communication. “Communication plays a huge role in raising awareness and sharing information and will continue to help raise awareness on these kinds of violence, which affect more people than we think. It is really important to show that this is no trivial matter,” explains Emmanuelle Muffat.

• A partnership with the Student Office and the Sports and Arts associations ensured the event received maximum publicity.

• A specific Facebook profile photo filter was created and widely used. 

• In partnership with the association Alive, a video featuring interviews with NEOMA students was produced. The video counted 1,300 views and was seen by more than 5,000 people.

• HeForShe Reims posted a number of forceful quotes from NEOMA students on its Instagram page.

• A Body Positive exhibition was set up featuring photos of students who agreed to display a part of their body that society considers a flaw.

Huge congratulations to the students of HeForShe Reims for organising this event and providing an opportunity for taboo-free dialogue and experience sharing.