Lady Gaga highlighted some seriously important truths about campus rape and sexual assault in her latest music video, "Til It Happens To You." This emotional and graphic portrayal of three different accounts of rape display just how prevalent rape culture is on college campuses.

The video begins with a trigger warning to keep in mind as you watch the video and continue reading: "The following contains graphic content that may be emotionally unsettling but reflects the reality of what is happening daily on college campuses."

Lady Gaga created the video in collaboration with the crew from The Hunting Ground, a documentary about rape on college campuses. A portion of proceeds from the sale of the song will also be donated to organizations helping survivors of sexual assault. The video empowers survivors to build solidarity and support for one another, sending the message that you don't have to go through this alone.

We hope u feel our love&solidarity through the song & perhaps find some peace in knowing u r not alone through this film #TilItHappensToYou
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga)

As the video states, "One in five college women will be sexually assaulted this year unless something changes." The harsh reality is that far too many women face sexual assault on our college campuses. This is all part of a culture that will continue unless we change how we talk about rape and start teaching both men and women that the victim is never at fault. The problem with rape culture is that we shift the blame from the perpetrator to the victim, implying that it is a woman's job to not get raped. As this video shows, rape is not some isolated incident that happens in the moment; rape is a planned act of power and oppression. In her Ted Talk, actress Clementine Ford stated, "The way that we talk about rape as if it is some arbitrary thing that just happens to women, that we just walk out of the door one day and just accidentally step in a puddle of it because we weren't paying attention, that's how we remove responsibility from the problem."
Itsonus.org states, it's on all of us:

To RECOGNIZE that non-consensual sex is sexual assault.

To IDENTIFY situations in which sexual assault may occur.

To INTERVENE in situations where consent has not or cannot be given.

To CREATE an environment in which sexual assault is unacceptable and survivors are supported.

In order to change this culture, we have to to create a society in which rape is perceived as both wrong and punishable by law. It's on each one of us to not only step in when we see someone in a dangerous situation, but also to build a safer campus environment where these situations no longer affect 20% of college women.