New program teaches UBC grad students to be 'active bystanders'

Have you ever found yourself witnessing an unsafe sexual situation or an instance of racism, but were unsure what to do about it?

UBC's Graduate Student Society is hoping to give its students the tools to do just that with its new Active Bystander Program, a training and awareness initiative that will launch with the new school year this fall.

GSS president Gen Cruz said the program is the first of its kind in Canada specifically targeted at graduate students, who can be somewhat isolated from the broader university community.

"A lot of times [as a graduate student] you're thinking about your career," Cruz told On the Coast host Stephen Quinn. "You don't want to think about what to do if this happens to you, so sometimes students are caught off-guard when a situation happens."

Program teaches tools and resources

The program uses peer facilitators to teach graduate students how to identify potentially unsafe situations, such as a person receiving unwanted sexual attention, and how to interrupt them.

"That can range from just pretending to know the person to actually stepping in and being like, hey, that's not right," Cruz said.

For those who feel unsafe taking such action on their own, Cruz said thereare other resources available, such as campus security, if the event is on campusor calling friends for help.

While sexual assault is a focus, Cruz said the program will also deal with situations of racial and other forms of discrimination.

UBC is currently drafting a formal sexual assault policy after a series of incidents in recent years.

With files from CBC Radio One's On the Coast