Someone Put Up Signs at Indiana University Calling Sexual Assault Victims 'Attention Whores'

Rape culture is still alive and well, and in case you needed any proof, look no further than the signs someone put up around the Indiana University campus on Monday.

Teen Vogue reports that a person anonymously created and posted flyers designed to look like they came from the university that call consent a "buzzword," and say that, "sexual assault occurs when attention whores (eg: you) need extra sympathy and decide to cry raep [sic]." 

The posters also accused victims of withdrawing consent after sex and of using assault as an excuse for cheating on their boyfriends, amongst other awful things. They were even marked with the #ItsOnUs hashtag and featured a link to a website that reportedly downloads malware to computers.

Students reportedly found the posters in multiple buildings throughout campus and began posting images of them to social media on Monday. After photos of the posters were spread, IU released a statement Monday night saying the posters were both fake and offensive.

"Sexual assault is not a laughing matter," IU said in the statement. "Sexual assault is an endemic issue facing college students nationwide, and one that we are actively trying to eradicate from our campus and community."

Junior Toby Klein, director of outreach and education at IU's student organization Raising Awareness of Interactions in Sexual Encounters, told the Indiana Daily Student that the attacks made in the posters weren't a surprise to her, despite the fact that she was horrified by them. "These opinions have long been held by a lot of people," Klein said. "This is absolutely appalling and disturbing, but it's not a surprise."

The Indiana University Police Department is investigating the posters, though they have yet to get to the bottom of who is responsible for them.