Governor Proclaims Sexual Assault Awareness Month 2021

WHEREAS, by definition, sexual violence is any unwanted sexual contact – either in person or online – including sexual assault, harassment, and abuse, according to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center; and

WHEREAS, Sexual Assault Awareness Month calls attention to the impact of sexual violence in communities across the state and nation, raising public awareness and educating communities on how to prevent it; and

WHEREAS, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the cost of sexual violence over a lifetime per victim is $122,461 nationwide, and includes criminal justice costs, property loss or damage, loss of work productivity, and short-and-long term physical and mental health treatments for victims; and

WHEREAS, the National Sexual Assault Hotline estimates that one in six women and one in 33 men in the United States have experienced some form of sexual violence in their lifetime; and

WHEREAS, according to the North Carolina Council for Women and Youth Involvement, from July 2019 – June 2020, North Carolina rape crisis centers served 10,696 individuals, including almost 3,000 children under the age of 18; and received 22,404 hotline calls; and

WHEREAS, people who are a part of marginalized communities or hold marginalized identities often are at higher risk for experiencing sexual violence and have more limited access to services that will support meaningful pathways to healing and justice; and

WHEREAS, the North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault and rape crisis advocates across the state remain committed to ending sexual violence in our communities by continuing to be allies in all anti-oppression movements, realizing that we cannot truly end sexual violence without also ending all forms of oppression; and

WHEREAS, despite the pandemic and the challenges faced by rape crisis centers nationwide, our voices have power and should be used to support survivors and end sexual violence; by working together to support survivors we can ensure access to support services during and after the pandemic; teach our friends, family, and community members about consent and other prevention methods to stop sexual violence before it happens; and always choose to believe survivors;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, ROY COOPER, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim April, 2021, as “SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH” in North Carolina, and commend its observance to all citizens.