Facts About Domestic and Sexual Violence

  • Family violence accounts for 33% of all violent crimes.1
  • Nearly three in four family violence victims are female (73%)1
  • 40% of family violence victims are injured during an incident of violence1
  • Family Violence occurs every 7 seconds1
  • 1 in 4 women and 1 in 17 men have experienced attempted or completed sexual assault2
  • Only 10-16% of all sexual assaults are reported to law enforcement3
  • Most sexual assaults are committed by someone the victim knows3
  • On college campuses, sexual assault involves the use of alcohol or drugs 90% of the time4

    • 1U.S. Department of Justice, May, 2005, NCJ 207846

    2Colorado Department of Public Health And Enviornment and CCASA, 1998

    3Bureau of Justice Statistics, US Deparmtnet of Justice, 1997

    4National Collegiate Date and Acquaintance Rape Statistics,1996

Emotional Effects of Family or Sexual Violence

Counseling and support can reduce long term emotional and mental problems for victims of violence. Victims may experience any or some of the following emotions:

  1. Guilt
  2. Confusion
  3. Depression
  4. Fear
  5. Anxiety
  6. Denial
  7. Anger
  8. Self blame and doubt, that the incident was not as bad as it seems
  9. Spend time wondering “why is this happening?”
  10. Spend time with memories of being helpless to stop the assault
  11. Belief that the victim was at fault because of alcohol or drug use

Facts about Sexual Assault

Sexual assault is any form of unwanted sexual contact obtained without consent and/or obtained through the use of force, threat of force, intimidation, or coercion. Sexual assault is an act of violence and power.

Prevention: The Five Warning Signs

  • Ignoring: someone who ignores your words, wishes and wants.
  • Invasion: someone invades your personal space (physical, verbal, visual).
  • Isolation: assailants want to isolate people in order to be able to attack them
  • Intoxication: alcohol and drugs can alter your ability to notice and react to warning signs
  • Instincts: trust your instincts! If you get a bad feeling about a situation, don’t ignore it.
    Find a way to leave the situation.

DON’T SUFFER IN SILENCE. MAKE THE CALL.

Our Sisters Keeper Coalition Inc.