- The Washington Times - Tuesday, January 20, 2015

The mattress-toting Columbia University student and advocate for sexual assault survivors will be Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s guest at Tuesday night’s State of the Union.

Emma Sulkowicz, a senior, alleged that she was raped in her own bed during her sophomore year, though her alleged rapist says the sex was consensual. Ms. Sulkowicz has been carrying her mattress around the New York City campus since September as a capstone piece of performance art to help raise awareness of sexual assault survivors.

Ms. Gillibrand, a New York Democrat who has pushed for reforms in how sexual assault is handled both in the military and on college campuses, said she was “honored” Ms. Sulkowicz would attend the president’s speech.

“With her inspiring #CarryThatWeight project, Emma is making her voice heard every day on behalf of survivors of campus sexual assault,” Ms. Gillibrand wrote in a tweet.

Ms. Sulkowicz has said she will continue carrying the mattress around campus until her alleged rapist is expelled. 

• Jacqueline Klimas can be reached at jklimas@washingtontimes.com.

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