Sadly, Kristin Cooper’s family and friends lost someone they loved dearly after a terrible, terrible event. The sheer wrongness and violation of rape, and particularly date rape, can be said in so many ways and yet it continues.

The way in which rape can damage an individual strikes at the heart of the foundation this country and institutions like universities were built on: equality and human liberty. But “Kristin’s Story” implores us to consider the far more personal aspect of the care and consideration we must bring to our relationships with friends and family.

Certainly, the friends and family of Kristin Cooper are not to blame for her death, and yet they must deal with an immeasurable void in their lives. In speaking with students as she did Wednesday evening and many other evenings all over this country, Andrea Cooper embodies the kind of extraordinary courage and kindness worth emulating. Her message of compassionate awareness is one that should be taken to heart.

Vanderbilt’s campus, like many others, is comprised of an incredibly capable, independent group of people who have shown again and again what they can achieve. This strength and success, however, can be both a blessing and a curse. Sometimes that robust confidence, both in the classroom and on a Saturday night, can mask long-silenced struggles. For many of us, the most difficult of personal exchanges is asking for help.

At the same time, too often we overlook the signs of distress in those for whom we care, fearing the confrontation of asking a friend if they need help.
“Kristin’s Story” demonstrates the most frightening potential danger in that. This is not to say all situations are comparable, because that’s not the case. A genuine concern for a friend, however, should never be undermined by the assumption that vocalizing it will inevitably ruin a relationship. If anything, it may provide the strength someone needs to face the struggle.