Santa Rosa Junior College’s Student Health Services, along with the PEERS coalition (People Empowering Each other to Realize Success), coordinated an informative lecture on non-violent sexuality April 3 in Newman Auditorium with Bob Hall, former board member of the New York State Coalition Against Sexual Assault.

Hall was the guest speaker for the event. His lecture, “Nonviolent Sexuality Making Peace with Passion,” covered the multifaceted issue of sex in American culture.

Hall informed the audience with humor and concrete facts about sex, conflict, alcohol and intimacy. He created awareness about the conflict surrounding the topic and practice of sex in many aspects of people’s lives. “When it comes to sex, we all don’t come from the same place,” Hall said.

Apart from the humor, Hall also communicated the seriousness of the violence connected to sex and how alcohol is a major factor in most rape cases. “We have a problem with a pathological consumption of alcohol,” Hall said.

Becky Fein, coordinator for PEERS Coalition at SRJC, believes that there is a lot happening around sexual assaults and sexual violence on college campuses and in the media. Fein said. “It’s about bringing a voice to an issue.”

Regarding the lecture’s impact, SRJC student Mickale Jones said, “The biggest thing I got, I think, was his take on rape being that people need to be more considerate. It can change someone’s life.”

Hall ended the lecture by reminding students to take responsibility for their actions and those of their peers regarding sex and sexual assaults.

“You are the ones with the power to make this campus safe,” Hall said.

The PEERS Coalition holds weekly meetings at SRJC, which facilitate the awareness and “change of mental health culture on campus.”