Megan Bonanni and Ashley Judd: Men Must Help End the Silence Around Sexual Assault

Firm Partner Megan Bonanni, alongside American actress and activist Ashley Judd, penned an open letter in response to the University of Michigan’s Lambda Chi Alpha’s Sigma Zeta chapter’s statement on the allegations surfacing from the Cornell fraternity chapter.  

Within the letter, Megan and Ashley thank the University of Michigan chapter for speaking out against sexual assault and abuse, and push other fraternities to do the same. Read the full letter here: 

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As advocates for survivors of sexual assault, survivors should not have to carry this fight alone. 
  
Thank you to Lambda Chi Alpha’s Sigma Zeta chapter at the University of Michigan for standing with the Cornell survivors, calling for accountability, and pledging financial support to SafeHouse Center, which supports survivors of sexual assault. This is a timely, heartfelt step in the right direction. It deserves to be recognized—and followed. 
  
Gloria Steinem called on men to help create “an atmosphere in which men are penalized for violence toward women and rewarded for treating women as equals.” 
  
That responsibility belongs in every fraternity house, locker room, boardroom, and circle of friends. Men have the power to challenge other men, break the silence surrounding abuse, and insist that women’s safety comes before an organization’s reputation. 
  
To other fraternities and men’s groups: take up this call. Speak out. Listen to survivors. Support the organizations helping them. Hold your own members accountable, including when the person you must confront is your friend, your teammate, or your brother. 
Do not wait for the next assault, the next headline, or the next woman forced to fight alone. 
  
The young men of Lambda Chi have stepped forward. It is time for everyone to do the same.