Jack C. Straton
C/o University Studies Portland State University Portland,
OR, 97207-0751 503-725-4227

Letters to the Editor

The Oregonian
1320 S.W. Broadway
Portland, OR 97201

Dear Editor:

This is in response to Clarence Page’s column criticizing the sexual offense policy at Antioch College, which requires verbal consent at each new stage of sexual intimacy. Mr. Page essentially blames rape on women who don’t "respect themselves enough to tell a man ‘no’ when they mean ‘no,’ whether he asks or not." He says the policy "means that before any hugging, kissing, fondling, groping, shirt unbuttoning, bra unfastening or other shenanigans can take place, you’d better ask and receive permission properly and unequivocally every step of the way, buster." Such a listing embodies the mind-set of men on the road to "scoring" that epitomizes nonconsensual sex, a.k.a. acquaintance rape.

He obviously values protecting men’s sexual access over attempts to create equality for women. He apparently prefers things as they are, with 15.4% of college women experiencing rape (committed by acquaintances 89% of the time), another 12.1% attempted rape, 11.9% sexual coercion, and 14.4% unwanted sexual contact, according to the 1987 survey of 6,159 students on 32 college campuses by Mary P. Koss.

Mr. Page’s "mind boggles at how stilted romance would become if anyone tried to follow this . . . policy to the letter." But many of us prefer removing doubts and preventing miscommunication — by talking about each level of intimacy before trying it — to coercing sexual partners unknowingly. Verbal communication frees our creativity, easily compensating for any lost spontaneity, and is the only way to hear another person enthusiastically say "Yes!" to intimacy with us. Speech has been acknowledged as the trait that separates humans from "the animals." It is past time for all men to take the evolutionary step of making sexuality a fully human experience. Grunts and gestures just don’t cut it anymore.

Sincerely,
Jack C. Straton, Ph.D.

Jack Straton

With a background in jazz, quantum theory, and diversity training, Jack Straton infuses his classes with creativity, interdisciplinary experience, and interpersonal connection.

Jack Straton earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in photography from the University of Oregon in 1977, worked as a professional jazz drummer for three years, and then returned to the U of O in the 1980s to earn a doctorate in quantum theory. Both as a volunteer and professional diversity trainer over the past 18 years, he has presented several hundred workshops on ending sexual assault and racism. Jack founded Men Against Rape groups in Eugene, Oregon, Washington, D.C., and Manhattan, Kansas. He has published extensively in professional journals from his research in Quantum Scattering Theory, Gender Equity, and Diversity Training Methods. He has served as co-chair of the National Organization for Men Against Sexism (NOMAS) and, as coordinator of the NOMAS Task Group on Child Custody Issues, is recognized as one of the leading writers and speakers in the country with expertise on ethical and public policy issues related to the overlap between child custody, child abuse, and woman abuse.

Jack has been teaching Inquiry courses at PSU since 1995, currently Popular Culture and Pathways to Sustainability and Justice, always seeking to infuse them with creativity, interdisciplinary experience, and interpersonal connection.

Publications

Analytically Continued Hypergeometric Expression of the Incomplete Beta Function

The Incomplete Gamma Function Expressed as a Sum of Macdonald Functions

Jack C. Straton, Associate Professor, Physics & University Studies (Photo © Brent Hirack)

E-Mail: <straton [at} pdx.edu>

http://web.pdx.edu/~straton/ 

The Myth of the "Battered Husband Syndrome - Filed under Ending Men's Violence, Paper. By Jack C. Straton, Ph.D.