The Red Zone
More than half of campus sexual assaults occur between the start of the fall semester and Thanksgiving break, in a period of time known as The Red Zone. Pittsburgh universities, like many across the country, report few cases of sexual and gender-based violence each year. Some annual counts even suggest that rape, stalking and domestic violence have not occurred at all.
But these institutions — and most importantly, their students — know that violence is likely more pervasive than the numbers show. The following photos of the survivors and advocates who shared their experiences with the Red Zone reporting team centered around the use of circular mirrors. The tool allowed for an element to connect the participants to each other – to take the isolation of these acts and reflect forward into the larger community of people who are finding each other as they build healing around sexual and intimate partner violence. Sometimes, the mirrors are used to craft visual metaphors for the physical experiences that survivors shared such as dissociation with the body and periods of memory loss. The mirrors also allowed for survivors to participate at the level of identification they were comfortable with. As one advocate put it, “I like to say: It’s a community I love dearly, but it’s one that I’m never happy to see other people join.”
University of Pittsburgh student Eva Steele poses for a photo with a fellow Pitt student on Sept. 19, 2022, in Oakland. Eva is connecting other survivors of intimate partner violence with opportunities to forge a path of support for others in the same position. Her Project Healing Sideways is at the table with Pitt’s Title IX office, bringing the perspectives of survivors to policy discussions.
Elizabeth (who asked to conceal her identity) stands for a portrait and reflects the dorms where she says her assault occurred. Elizabeth and Melissa Ferraro, pictured in the next frame, survived sexual assault on campus 20 years apart. Their experiences shed light on how little has changed. Photographed on Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022, at the University of Pittsburgh in Oakland.
Melissa Ferraro, center, holds a mirror reflecting herself with her two children, Marco, left, 14, and Felicia, 17, as they stand for a portrait at home on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022, in Jefferson Hills. Melissa says her experience with assault has truly informed how she raises her children, with attention to age-appropriate conversations about consent and bodily autonomy, to break generational chains of trauma.
Elizabeth (who asked to conceal her identity) said something didn’t seem right about the drinks she was served on the night of her assault. Photographed on Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022, at the University of Pittsburgh in Oakland.
Alyssa Beley is reflected in the glass of the University of Pittsburgh’s arts building as she stands for a portrait on Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022, in Oakland. She says her experience seeking counseling after being assaulted while she was a freshman at the school led her to her current career path to be a trauma therapist to help survivors.
University of Pittsburgh student Mia Larkin is reflected for a portrait on campus on Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2022, in Oakland. Larkin spoke to the shame and guilt that causes survivors to question their experiences. “I’m like, ‘I am wrong. I’m in the wrong for this. This was my fault for letting him in,’” they said.
University of Pittsburgh student Eva Steele poses for a photo on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2022, in Oakland. Steele says one of the impacts of experiencing intimate partner violence has been forgetting blocks of time in her life.
Nadiyah Fisher, a senior and president of the University of Pittsburgh’s chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, stands for a portrait on Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2022, in Oakland. Fisher believes that the campus culture around sex and consent is improving, partly through the work of student organizations. Her organization hosted a sexual assault awareness program last year, where Fisher and other students shared their stories as an invitation for survivors to talk and seek resources, if they choose to.
Beth (who asked to conceal her identity), a University of Pittsburgh senior, stands for a portrait on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Oakland. After filing an assault claim, Pitt told Beth they would get her an adviser to navigate through her Title IX case. She was told the case would take 60 days overall. But after her assailant lawyered up, delays, broken promises and inconsistent communication turned her into a pessimist.
Ashley Pesarsick, a pre-med student at Chatham University and orientation leader, stands for a portrait on campus on Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in Shadyside. During her first year as an orientation leader, Pesarsick met with students before their mandatory training on sexual assault prevention, providing trigger warnings and informing the students about what they’d be discussing. After the training, Pesarsick asked the students to share what they’ve learned and ran through practice scenarios.