I get this question a lot. It’s a great question. How common is sexual abuse and sexual assault?
You know a survivor. You do. Even if they haven’t told you. They are your friends, co-workers, neighbors, family members, and partners.
To the numbers: Best estimates are 1 in 6 for women and 1 in 33 for men. These are numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These are probably under-estimates, because when you ask people if they have been raped, inevitably some people check the ‘no’ box because of stigma, confusion, shame, etc.
Here’s another doozy. All those survivors we are talking about? Almost half of them are under 18. And 15% are under the age of 12.
It’s more common than is conscionable.
Can there be good news in this post? Some studies have shown a decline in sexual violence since the early 1990s. Public awareness campaigns are making an impact. We’ve got a long way go, but we are going in the right direction.