This April, our community joins the national observance of Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM), reaffirming a simple yet powerful truth: Survivors are at the heart and center of the movement to end sexual violence.
Their courage, insight and advocacy have shaped prevention strategies, improved services and challenged institutions to become more responsive and just.
Honoring survivors means more than wearing a color or sharing a post. It means listening to their voices, believing their accounts, and building systems that create change.
The last few months, we have been inundated with news of sexual violence and demands for justice — survivors speaking out about the atrocities done to them, even as minors. We know that sexual violence touches every corner of society, crossing lines of age, race, gender, ability and income.
Statistically, you likely know someone who has been affected by sexual violence — 45 percent of women and 17 percent of men in the U.S. have experienced some form of sexually violent contact, with 21 percent of women reporting completed or attempted rape and 3.2 percent men reporting. One in three female victims first experienced that attempted or completed rape between the age of 11 and 17, one in four for male victims.
Yet, statistics never capture the full reality of trauma or the possibilities of healing.
Survivors remind us that recovery is not linear and that safety, choice and community support are essential.
This year’s theme, “Honoring Survivors,” invites each of us to take concrete steps to support survivors:
- Respond with empathy instead of skepticism.
- Create conditions in yourself, your workplace, among your friend group, that emulates a culture of caring and believing without judgment.
- Respect survivors’ decisions without placing blame or doubt.
Violence is less likely when we start to believe survivors and when we shift our response from skepticism to solidarity with survivors.
For too long, perpetrators have used lies and placed doubt, while survivors have had to “prove” their experience and trauma. We’ve protected the accused rather than the harmed.
When we believe survivors, not with blind acceptance, but with presumed credibility, we begin to break apart the foundation that allows sexual violence to continue, even flourish.
When the cost of perpetration outweighs the “benefits,” and when survivors know they will be heard and protected rather than questioned and blamed, we will begin to end this epidemic. Let’s be that change.
Rise Above Violence is committed to being that change for victims of sexual violence. We’re believers in justice, and the power and possibilities. We stand with survivors while creating community actions to end violence.
Join us in taking action this month.
On April 29, Rise is hosting a screening of “North Country” at the Liberty Theatre. This powerful film shows the real-world impact of standing together, believing survivors and refusing to accept a culture of silence. Your ticket supports Rise and real survivors right here in Pagosa Springs and Archuleta County, turning awareness into tangible resources and hope.
For more information on SAAM, supporting survivors or upcoming events, visit www.riseaboveviolence.org.
If you or someone you know needs support, Rise’s 24/7 hotline is available at (970) 264-9075.