Patricia Marchant, a family in therapist in private practice with Midwest Center for Human Services, was the facilitator for the discussion.,”

• The Office of Student Development and Department of Public Safety hosted a panel discussion on how different cultures deal with sexual assault.
• Panelist Inshirah Farhoud said sexual assault is an act of aggression by the perpetrator and should not be blamed on the victim.
• The four speakers agreed that many times victims do not report incidences of sexual assault due to being victimized again by the medical system and police departments.

A panel discussion Tuesday night explored how different cultures deal with sexual assault. The discussion was held in the Alumni Memorial Union.

Panelists spoke about how the Muslim, Hmong, black and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities handle incidents of sexual assault and their effects on victims and others.

The discussion was sponsored by the Office of Student Development and the Department for Public Safety.

Inshirah Farhoud, a nurse practitioner for the Medical College of Wisconsin, said sexual assault should not be blamed on the victim. Instead, it should be seen as an act of violence by the perpetrator, she said.

"The biggest insult that could be given in the Muslim community is the rape of women," Farhoud said.

In Bosnia and Iraq, sexual assault was formerly used as an act of aggression against Muslim women, she said.

Mao Lee, victim advocate and family strengthening program manager for Hmong American Friendship Association, Inc., said the notion of rape or sexual assault does not exist in her culture. She said when a woman is married, she is like the property of her husband and he is allowed to do anything with her. Hmong women deal with sexual assault by blocking away the memory and never revisiting it, Lee said.

Meighan Bentz, victim advocate and coordinator for the Anti-Violence Project at the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center, said there is a high amount of domestic and sexual abuse that goes unreported in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

Bentz said LGBT community members often do not report sexual assaults because they have to reveal their sexual orientation and gender identity. They feel victimized again, she said.

In many cases gay men do not report sexual assault because they feel they have to be "a strong male," Bentz said.

Annika Leonard, anti-oppression outreach coordinator for the Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault, said people often feel victimized by healing resources such as the medical system and police departments. She said such departments often do not offer proper treatment due to stereotypes.

The discussion had a turnout of more than 50 students.

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At the discussion, these videos on the topic of sexual assault were shown:

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