Yes Means Yes

       New York's state university system has recently adopted a yes means yes policy to combat sexual abuse on its 64 campuses state wide. This policy will apply to nearly half a million students. "Under the new "yes means yes" standard, silence cannot be interpreted as permission to engage in sexual contact, and consent may be withdrawn at any time. The new definition says: "Affirmative consent is a clear, unambiguous, knowing, informed, and voluntary agreement between all participants to engage in sexual activity. Consent is active, not passive. The standard goes on to say that a prior sexual relationship does not confer consent to future sexual activity." This law also applies to private universities across the state. Here at SUNY Potsdam, we've been confronted with several rape cases earlier in the semester. The amount of rape cases vastly differ from campus to campus. I personally don't see how this law will reduce rape cases in any way, but I am interested to see the effect it will have on New York in the future.