California Adopts 'Yes Means Yes' Rule Before Sexual Activity

California Governor Jerry Brown announced a newly signed bill on Sunday which requires university and college couples to obtain affirmative consent from their respective partners before sex. 

The legislation, the "yes means yes" law, aims to advocate a change in the perception of rape as well as curb the incidence of the same across campuses. 

"Lack of protest or resistance does not mean consent," states the law, "nor does silence mean consent. Affirmative consent must be ongoing throughout a sexual activity and can be revoked at any time."

"Every student deserves a learning environment that is safe and healthy," quoted ABC News of Sen. Kevin de Leon during a statement delivered Sunday night. "The State of California will not allow schools to sweep rape cases under the rug. We've shifted the conversation regarding sexual assault to one of prevention, justice, and healing."

The outlet reported that state lawmakers "approved SB967 by Sen. Kevin de Leon, D-Los Angeles, as states and universities across the U.S. are under pressure to change how they handle rape allegations." 

As an alternative approach to "no means no", the landmark policy has altered the definition of consent and requires "an affirmative, conscious and voluntary agreement" from partners prior to engaging in sexual activity.

Moreover, the law cites that any individual who is asleep, unconscious or intoxicated is unable to give the same consent. 

The office of Governor Brown received petitions on Sept. 16 filled with thousands of signatures from both survivors of sexual assault and women's advocacy groups to sign the bill that will apply to all state-funded colleges and universities. It also requires the institutions to adopt victim-centered sexual assault response policies along with prevention programs, noted the Washington Post.

Citing that the law will provide consistency throughout various campuses, "yes means yes" topples the notion that survivors should have resisted assault to have a valid claim. Advocates believe that this will bring about more basic protection, improve accountability and prevention as well as provide better mechanisms for healing and recovery.

"This is amazing," said UCLA student Savannah Badalich, via MSN. "It's going to educate an entire new generation of students on what consent is and what consent is not ... that the absence of a no is not a yes."

However, the National Coalition for Men labels the bill as "misandric" or man-hating. They argue that the law will give "license to false accusations, denies the accused due process, will cost the state hundreds of millions of dollars in law suits and sets the stage for ruining innocent lives," reported BBC.