By Heidi Van Heuklon, LCPC Clinical Director, Center for Prevention of Abuse
Every 98 seconds an American is sexually assaulted, and every eight minutes that victim is a child (US DOJ, 2015).
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and what better time to discuss the issue of sexual assault than now. The goal of Sexual Assault Awareness month is to raise public awareness about the issue of sexual violence and educate communities on how to prevent it. Following the #MeToo movement, along with other initiatives, such as #TimesUp, the media is full of stories of survivors coming forward to disclose their past or current experiences with sexual assault or sexual harassment.
As a sexual assault advocate and therapist, I have seen the full spectrum of reactions following these movements. Many survivors, who had previously kept their abuse a secret from their friends or loved ones, felt empowered to join the #MeToo movement and disclose publicly their experience of sexual assault. The reactions from those disclosures have ranged from some survivors receiving a great amount of support from those around them, to other survivors feeling questioned about their circumstances or blamed for their experiences.
If we can all agree sexual assault and sexual harassment are wrong and need to stop, then what do we need to do as a community to put an end to sexual violence? We need expose it. Offenders are frequently able to have multiple victims due to the ongoing secrecy of the acts that they commit. One of the number-one reasons that survivors of sexual violence may not disclose right away is fear of being blamed or judged. If your friend, family member, or child experiences sexual violence, their decision to tell you will be based on your attitude, and what they have seen or heard from you about the issue of sexual violence. In order to expose the issue of sexual violence, we all need to embrace our voice by supporting survivors so that these issues can be brought to light.
In 2017, the Sexual Assault program at the Center for Prevention of Abuse served 452 survivors of sexual violence ranging in age from one year old to 75 years old. The chances are high that one of our child therapists was seeing a child in your community or your neighborhood for sexual assault issues or that your co-worker was coming to their sexual assault counseling appointment during their lunch break. The words that you chose to use every day impact survivors around you. You can embrace your voice to be an agent of change and support in very basic ways. Please don’t wait for the moment of crisis or disclosure to use the right words to support a friend or family member. Be an agent of change now by refuting victim-blaming comments or jokes based on sexual assault stereotypes. Be cautious of the words and comments that you use on social media related to sexual violence as your comments may be offensive or triggering to your own loved ones or friends who may have never disclosed their victimization to you before.
Our goal at the Center for Prevention of Abuse is to support survivors of sexual violence and to keep the conversation going about the issue in order to prevent future occurrences. We work to reduce the shame and secrecy associated with disclosures. You can join us by standing in support for survivors on a local level by registering for our 5k run / one-mile walk on Saturday, April 14th at 8am, I Run With Survivors. Register today by visiting our Facebook page at Facebook.com/CenterforPreventionofAbuse.