April is Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month
April 14, 2017
According to the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN), an American is sexually assaulted every 98 seconds, but only six out of every 1,000 perpetrators serve time in prison. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention defines sexual violence as “any sexual activity where consent is not freely given,” including completed or attempted sex acts where the victim does not consent and/or is unable to consent. Sexual violence also includes unwanted sexual contact, as well as verbal sexual harassment.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, and the National Sexual Violence Resource Center has chosen “Engaging New Voices” as this year’s theme. Visit their website at http://www.nsvrc.org/saam to learn more. In addition, RAINN offers a guide that includes social media language, graphics, and statistics that you can use to help raise awareness of this issue. Visit https://www.rainn.org/SAAPM2017 to view the toolkit today. Remember that consent is an important topic to discuss when raising awareness of sexual assault. Read about what consent means and why it is important to teach others about consent by clicking here.
From donating money and supplies to rape crisis centers to volunteering for sexual assault hotlines, GFWC members are committed to ending sexual violence. Participate in Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month by speaking up about this issue. This month also gives us an opportunity to continue the conversation about sexual assault on college campuses. Learn more by watching the award-winning documentary The Hunting Ground, which is available to stream on Netflix.
An eight-year Air Force veteran, Penny has been a GFWC member since 2008, and is currently serving as the club president of GFWC Helena Woman’s Club (Montana).
Success For Survivors Scholarship
Each year, GFWC awards scholarships to help intimate partner abuse survivors obtain a post-secondary education that offers a chance to reshape their future by securing employment and gaining personal independence.
GFWC Montgomery Woman’s Club
Since its founding in 1954, the GFWC Montgomery Woman’s Club, Inc. of Montgomery, Ohio has raised over $1.5 million for education and $430,000 for charity. Eighty-seven members strong, the club is known for volunteer service and community improvement, especially during the holiday months when members decorate the town for Christmas.