Violence Prevention

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). This directed effort for national awareness and education about sexual assault brings attention to the all too prevalent reality of this heinous act. Sexual Assault is defined as any kind of sexual activity that is unwanted, enacted by one person on another without consent. It may include the use of physical force (but many sexual assaults do not), and it involves some combination of coercion, threats and intimidation. According to the National Criminal Victimization Study, 248,000 people over the age of twelve reported being raped. An American is sexually assaulted every two minutes. However, only 38 percent of sexual assaults are reported to the police and even more horrifying, less than half of those arrested for sexual assault are convicted.
Click here for a list of SAAM events planned for SIUC this year.