This article was written by Vidette Staff member Ellery Cravey.

Over the years, McCaskey has had a multitude of clubs that pertain to certain activities and hobbies. However, there’s a particular club that is relatively new, and has piqued the interest of many. It doesn’t revolve around fun activities; in fact, this club talks about scary, but very real, topics. It’s called the Sexual Assualt Awareness Youth Club, or the SAAY Club.

Back in October of 2021, Mariana “Kenny” Martinez and Shae McCloud encountered an incident involving a McCaskey high school senior allegedly trying to groom a freshman. “Shae and I were just very disgusted by this,” Kenny said. “The school said there was nothing they could do.” In addition, there were multiple sexual assault stories floating around social media at that time. Many people, some from McCaskey, came out with their experiences, which resonated with Shae and Kenny. They both have their own sexual assault stories — and this only fueled the urgency to create a safe space to talk about these issues. This is how the SAAY Club came to be.

The first thing both Shae and Kenny want people to know about the SAAY Club is that it is not a club focused on sharing stories about sexual trauma. “Whether you want to tell someone your story, or you want to just learn, it’s a place where everyone can be on the mutual level of understanding,” Shae said. 

The main point of it all is to spread awareness and educate people who may have a narrow-minded view of what sexual assualt is. “[Sexual assault] is not just ‘no means no’” Kenny said. “There are other types of sexual assault. We discuss the types, how to figure out if you’ve been assaulted, how to spot an assaulter, how to cope with it, how to help someone going through it.” 

Sexual assault is something that Shae and Kenny have wanted to talk about for some time. “It’s one of the first of its kind… in the school district. It’s something that we are all passionate about. We all care,” Kenny said. They emphasized the importance of talking about it in high school. Shae also added, “This is something I went through, and it’s something I’m trying to stop. My entire life, I have been… misunderstood by what I went through. This is finally a place where no matter what I say, it will almost always be listened to.”

So, why is this so important to the McCaskey community? Well, for one, it opens the doors to new perspectives on sexual assault. It’s not just what was taught to us in sex-ed class. There are more ways than one to sexually assault and/or harass somebody, and people need to be educated on that matter. Second, the stigma behind sexual assualt creates a mindset where people react in a negative way towards it. It makes them feel weird, uncomfortable, or stressed. “We wanted to make something that could possibly change that, or lessen that reaction,” Shae said.

If you didn’t know before, you know now that the SAAY Club isn’t just about speaking on trauma — there is so much more to this club, and to the people in it. The founders are passionate about what they do, and they will continue to push for the normalization of how to confront the harsh reality of sexual assault. 

If you want to educate yourself and be able to educate others on sexual assualt and all the aspects surrounding it, this club could be a good fit. They meet in room 201 at JP in Mr. White’s class, on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month.