With her new song “Till It Happens To You,” Lady Gaga is addressing an uncomfortable topic: rape and rape culture. In the music video for her most recent song release, Gaga focuses mainly on college rape, depicting several young women and a transgender man being raped on their college campuses, as she belts out the lyrics to her new ballad.

Directed by Catherine Hardwicke, the video was created to address the growing issue of sexual assault and rape on college campuses. The director not only focuses on the traumatizing experience of rape itself, but also on the loathing and self-hatred that follows for many rape victims. She ends the video with a statistic that 1 in 5 college women will be raped on campus this year alone. In one year, over 300,000 college women, which is just over 5% of all women enrolled in colleges and universities, experience rape not including sexual assault. According to a survey done by the Journal Of American College Health, from which Gaga pulled her statistics, 82% of women raped in college were under the influence of alcohol or other [date rape] drugs that were administered either with or without their knowledge. It goes on to say that as science has created stronger, more powerful drugs, this type of rape has become more and more common, though according to an article done by USA Today, alcohol is still the most common date rape “drug.”

Gaga released the video in coalition with a documentary about college rape and its devastating social and physical affects on sexual assault victims called “The Hunting Ground,” as well as in alliance with the It’s On Us campaign. “The Hunting Ground” which is currently in theaters, has been called “triumphant” and a “stirring call to action” by Indiewire, and an “unblinking look at sexual assaults on campus” by the New York Times. The singer projected the number for the National Sexual Assault Hotline as well as urged her fans, nicknamed “little monsters” to join the It’s On Us campaign at the end of the video.

The It’s On Us program is a one-year campaign launched by the white house that is battling sexual assault on college campuses, and Gaga’s video was released on its one year anniversary. The program’s website goes on to describe that: “It’s On Us to RECOGNIZE that non-consensual sex is sexual assault. To IDENTIFY situations in which sexual assault may occur. To INTERVENE in situations where consent has not or cannot be given. To CREATE an environment in which sexual assault is unacceptable and survivors are supported.” They then ask viewers of the website to pledge that they will do all of the above listed things, and promise “Not to be a bystander to the problem, but to be a part of the solution.” Part of the proceeds from the song will be benefitting sexual assault survivors.

However, the new video is not the first that we’re hearing from Gaga about the issue. Earlier this year, the vocalist/actress combined forces with Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York and co-wrote an op-ed essay advocating for his “Enough is Enough” bill to be passed. Recently signed, the new law will require all colleges to adopt a set of laws and guidelines including a “uniform definition of affirmative consent, a statewide amnesty policy, and expanded access to law enforcement,” -New York State Website. During his speech Governor Cuomo said, “I am proud to sign into law the most aggressive policy in the nation to fight against sexual assault on college campuses. Today, New York is making a clear and bold statement: sexual violence is a crime, and from now on in this state it will be investigated and prosecuted like one. With this law, we will better protect every student that attends college within our borders, and I am proud New York is leading the way once again. I thank my colleagues in the Legislature, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, the student advocates who fought to make this a reality, and all of the supporters who came together and said Enough is Enough,” similar statements were made by Pelosi.

Though Gaga may not be in a position of political influence, and though her video may contain some flaws, she is effectively bringing to light an issue of growing importance that is commonly being brushed off as unimportant. Today, pop culture icons and famous persons in general have major influence in our society. With her new song and video, Gaga is using that influence to fight for a good cause, and to help support those victimized by other students on their own college campuses.