On Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021, Fort Osage students wore pink in support of sexual violence awarness. They did this to show respect and support for students at Belton High School where a sexual assault happened in their community.

According to a TikTok post by @beltonstandup, a minor high school student who was convicted and served probation for sexual assault against two females ages 7 and 8 was allowed to return to school and participate in school activities.

This student is able to walk through school with the protection of police due to the fact that the student is a minor and protected by juvenile laws. His civil rights allow him to attend public schools.

Members of the Belton High School student body were enraged and tried to sign multiple petitions to get him off of school teams, but each one was denied. 

Junior Jayce Kern said it made him really happy seeing all the support while going into a game with Belton the next day. 

”I was the one who brought the incident up to the student council,” Kern said. “It started with the football team. We were on the bus and talked about how it angered us and so when I saw the post from Belton High School I decided to bring it to the school council’s attention, so that we could do something in support.” 

Local news media have not reported any information on this incident due to juvenile laws that protect minors. But Fort students participated by wearing pink to bring awareness to the situation.

Once it was brought to the student council’s attention, they worked fast to try and get the word spread to help raise the awareness. 

“I felt so happy seeing everybody in pink because the student council didn’t think we’d have the word out in time so it made me super happy to see everybody supportive of not just here but also Belton High School,” Freshman Lupe Yamauchi said.

Students started spreading awareness on social media by trying to get everybody to participate by wearing pink to support those who have been affected by this type of situation.

Students around the school were moved by how many people participated in the awareness for sexual assault and how much students cared about the situation. 

“It honestly meant a lot to everyone because it was supportive for everyone and what people have gone through,” Freshman Peyton Shockley said.

The social media post received over 8 thousand views to help bring awareness to sexual assault.