Daniel Craig, Seth Meyers, Steve Carell, Dulé Hill, and Benicio Del Toro are teaming up with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden to raise awareness across America regarding sexual abuse on college campuses.
In the one-minute public service announcement titled "1 is 2 Many," the men speak out about the dangers of sexual assault. According to the National Institute of Justice and Smith, one in five women is sexually assaulted while attending college. One in nine teen girls will be forced to have sex.
"We have a big problem and we need your help," Del Toro said in the video. "If she doesn't consent, or if she can't consent: it's rape. It's assault."
"It's happening at college campuses, at bars, at parties, even in high schools," Hill said.
"It's called sexual assault, and it has to stop," Meyers added.
The video, which was posted on the White House YouTube page, comes along with the release of a White House report urging universities to take more action to reduce sexual assaults. The White House in January created a task force to protect students from sexual assault. Under Title IX, schools had to address sexual violence in order to provide equal access to education.
The New York Times reported that "the administration is likely to ask Congress to pass measures that would enforce the recommendations and levy penalties for failing to do so."
"It's up to all of us to put an end to sexual assault," President Obama said in the video. Craig concludes: "Because one is too many."
The White House writes about the campaign on their website: "Despite the significant progress made in reducing violence against women, there is still a long way to go. Young women still face the highest rates of dating violence and sexual assault... In response to these alarming statistics, Vice President Biden is focusing his longstanding commitment to reducing violence against women specifically on teens, students, and young women ages 16-24. The Vice President pushed for the inclusion of vulnerable groups in the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, and he remains committed to supporting all survivors."
Biden said that in the neighborhood where he came from, "if a man raised his hand to a woman you had the job to kick the crap out of him," and added that "We need all of you to be part of the solution. This is about respect, it's about responsibility."
Craig also released a statement after the release of the PSA.
"I am honored to be part of such an important and crucial project," he said. "The message is clear and simple; everyone has a responsibility. There are no exceptions. There are no excuses. Please watch it and pass it on."
The video includes a group of A-listers celebrities and politicians who urging people to protect women in the "face of this unforgivable act," according to Us Weekly. The PSA will air as a pre-film preview in movie theaters this May.
