In the United States April is Sexual Assault Awareness Prevention Month (SAAPM). The goal of SAAPM is to raise public awareness about sexual violence and to educate communities on how to prevent it. Sexual violence is a major public health, human rights and social justice issue. Thank you for getting involved and for supporting SAAPM efforts.

Have you ever had a conversation about sexual assault, consent or rape culture? And what exactly is rape culture anyway?

Being surrounded by images, language, laws and other everyday phenomena that not only allows but justifies sexual violence. “Living in a rape culture” means that we are continually exposed to advertising, film, TV, music and online content that sexualizes and trivializes violence, especially violence toward women and girls. Sexual coercion and control seem so “normal” that people don’t view rape as a shared problem to solve, but “just how things are.”

ONE IS TOO MANY

This year CAWS North Dakota is continuing our Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month campaign with the slogan “One is too Many”. This campaign highlights the statistics representing victims of sexual violence. This year what we hope to emphasize is no matter what the statistic is – one victim is too many.

So, what are some of these statistics?

One in five women and one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives. Nearly one in 10 women has been raped by an intimate partner in her lifetime, including completed forced penetration, attempted forced penetration or alcohol/drug-facilitated completed penetration. Approximately one in 45 men has been made to penetrate an intimate partner during his lifetime. One in four girls and one in six boys will be sexually abused before they turn 18 years old. More than one-third of women who report being raped before age 18 also experience rape as an adult. One in 5 women and one in 16 men are sexually assaulted while in college

CAWS North Dakota Resources 

Sexual violence, sexual assault or sexual abuse is any type of unwanted, forced or coerced sexual contact. Sexual violence can be verbal, visual or anything that forces a person to join unwanted sexual contact or attention. It is also sexual violence when a person is unable or unwilling to give consent. For more information about sexual violence click here.

Facts and Resources on Sexual Violence in North Dakota 

2014 North Dakota Sexual Assault Fact Sheet

If you are a victim of sexual violence contact your local crisis intervention center for assistance. For a full list of local crisis intervention centers, click here. 

For more information on North Dakota sexual violence laws, click here.