KUSA — The woman credited with starting the #MeToo movement appeared in Denver on Thursday, sparking a conversation about how and when parents should talk to their children about sexual assault and consent.
Tarana Burke spoke at The Blue Bench's Changing the Conversation Luncheon. The nonprofit's mission is to eliminate sexual assault and diminish the impact it has on individuals, their loved ones and our community through comprehensive prevention, advocacy and care.
The event covered a lot of issues, but its main focus was to shift the way we talk about sexual assault.
Susie Roman, the director of prevention and education for The Blue Bench, said that message can also be geared toward teens.
"Young people are getting a lot of messages from our culture about the issue,” Roman said. “There's a lot of misconceptions out there about sexual violence."
During the luncheon, the accusation facing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh was discussed.
Christine Blasey Ford has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were in high school. She's faced backlash for coming out about an incident that happened decades ago.
Roman works with young people in her programs that often start talking to kids about sexual assault in middle school. She said this incident is a way to teach teens that what happens to them today will impact them in the long run.
"We really want to make sure that as young people are learning about this issue, having an understanding of the impacts of sexual violence and the trauma someone experiences and how that can carry into every part of their life,” Roman said. “When we can build that empathy and understanding, then people are more likely to say, "oh that happened so long ago it doesn't matter,' but instead recognize that it can continue to impact a person for a long time."
Roman said teaching kids about the impact of sexual assault starts with empowerment and awareness.
"When we talk to young people, we really try to help people see from a perspective of all the different ways that someone may be experiencing trauma in their life," she said.
The Blue Bench has a few programs for girls and boys that talks about consent, boundaries and ways to intervene if you see violent behaviors.
Roman said the main thing parents can do is have an open conversation with kids and talk about boundaries.