National studies estimate that almost 80 percent of people with developmental disabilities are sexual assaulted on more than one occasion, and 50 percent of those experience more than 10 victimizations. However, only one in 30 cases is reported to law enforcement. Why is that? People with developmental disabilities are much more vulnerable to sexual assault […]
Sexual Assault Awareness Month
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Sexual violence vastly underreported
For nearly 80 years, the FBI has collected national crime data. The Uniform Crime Report is the method used to provide statistical data regarding violent and victim crimes. The UCR provides information regarding “Part 1 Crimes” which are the eight personal and property crimes that the FBI considers to be “major.” As a police chief […]
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Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Be aware of sexual abuse by siblings
The Children’s Advocacy Center is a multi-disciplinary team of partners that promotes the healing of child sexual abuse victims by providing a strong community response to investigation, treatment and prevention of abuse. Of the 474 children seen in the past two years by our local center, 20 percent were abused by a sibling. Globally, one-third […]
Posted inOp-Eds, sj-web
Working toward the prevention of sexual violence
Last fall saw a groundswell of discussion around the truth about sexual assault and harassment in today’s society, now known as the #MeToo movement. Outside of social media, there has been wide-spanning coverage from essentially every news source. From heart-wrenching personal stories to the news pieces on the sleazy underbelly in Hollywood and the Olympics, […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Local colleges take strong initiatives against sexual violence on campus
Research indicates that one-in-five women and one-in-16 men are sexually assaulted while in college. The federal government requires that colleges institute policies, practices and programming to reduce the incidence of sexual assault and create effective response systems when a sexual assault occurs. To accomplish that, partnerships between academic institutions and community organizations are crucial to […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Multi-disciplinary team aids victims
To understand what a Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) is, it is helpful to understand what children face without one. Without a CAC, the child may have to tell the worst story of his or her life repeatedly to doctors, police, lawyers, therapists, investigators, judges and others. They may have to talk about that traumatic experience […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Recanting a disclosure of sexual assault: Taking back a lie, or something else entirely?
There is one pervasive myth that, as an advocate for survivors of sexual assault for almost 17 years, I have been subject to many opinions about — the myth that sexual assault survivors (children, adolescents, college students and adults) lie or make false reports about being sexually assaulted. Yet the facts indicate otherwise. According to […]
Posted inOp-Eds
April is Child Abuse Awareness Month
Child sexual abuse is any interaction between a child and an adult (or another child) in which the child is used for the sexual stimulation of the perpetrator or an observer. Sexual abuse can include both touching and non-touching behaviors. We can all agree that this is horrifying and most of us encourage children to […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Programs can teach adults about child sexual assault
Talking about childhood sexual abuse can be uncomfortable. Some parents might not know where to start. “What words should we use?” “If we talk about sexual abuse with children, will that make it more likely to happen?” “What if I haven’t figured out my own childhood trauma?” “But my plan to keep my child safe […]
Posted inOp-Eds
Help available for LBGTQ+ people
For five years, I have worked for Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Services as the outreach coordinator. The position involves working to connect services with people who are traditionally under-served and to ensure that the organization develops services that are informed, meaningful and culturally appropriate. One area of outreach is providing services to people who […]