Sexual Assault

Sexual assault is a form of violence that uses unwanted sexual actions, contact, pictures and words in ways that are harmful and traumatic to another person. There are many types of sexual assault: rape and attempted rape by an acquaintance, friend, family member, spouse or stranger; child sexual abuse, molestation, incest, or child sexual exploitation. Sexual assault can also take the form of exhibitionism, voyeurism, obscene phone calls, fondling, unwanted displays of pornography, and sexual harassment in the workplace, school or on the streets.

Most people think of rape when they hear the words sexual assault. While it is true that rape by a stranger is a form of sexual assault, there is a wide range of unwanted sexual contacts that many people experience that come under our definition of these words. Though sexual assault can take many forms, the loss of power and control that a victim experiences is a common thread.

Unfortunately, because of the silence that surrounds sexual assault, many myths have been created over time to explain why it happens and who it happens to. We often hear things like "only women can be raped," "a husband can't rape his wife," "she asked for it by wearing those shorts," and "that child must be lying - his father is a good man." We know that these things are not true. Both women and men can be sexually assaulted. Rape can occur within a marriage. A victim never asks to be raped and is never to blame for the behavior of the perpetrator. People who sexually assault are often people who go to church, have good jobs, and are well-liked in their community.

Here’s how we describe different forms of sexual assault: 

Rape is any sexual intercourse with a person without his or her consent. It is an act of violence that uses sex as a weapon. There are many different types of rape that are important to distinguish as well. Stranger rape happens when the victim does not know his or her offender. The reality of stranger rape is that it happens during the day and at night, to people from all different walks of life, and in lots of different places.

Date or acquaintance rape describes a rape in which the victim and the perpetrator are known to each other. The perpetrator might be a dating partner, coworker, best friend or neighbor. Eighty-four per cent (84%) of rapes happen among people who know one another. Sometimes a perpetrator uses drugs and/or alcohol to subdue the victim to commit a sexual attack.

Marital rape, one of the least talked about forms of sexual assault, is rape between husband and wife. Because of personal and societal barriers to reporting marital rape, its prevalence is probably higher than we are aware.

Child sexual abuse can be defined as any situation in which an adult or another child threatens, forces or manipulates a child into sexual activity. Many times the offender doesn't need to use physical force with the victim. Instead, they take advantage of their position of trust and authority. Child sexual abuse can include exposing a child to pornography, fondling the sexual parts of a child's body, making a child engage in sexual activity with others, and sexually penetrating a child orally, anally or vaginally with the penis, hand or any object. Incest is intercourse or touching of sexual parts between an adult family member and a child or between siblings.

For a sexual assault to be legally defined as an assault for an adult, the acts we’ve described must be committed either by force, threat or intimidation, or through use of the victim’s mental or physical helplessness of which the accused was aware or should have been aware. In cases of the rape of a child, age difference between the victim and perpetrator is required in place of force or threat of force.

Sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Sexual harassment often manifests itself in subtle ways, such as sexually suggestive comments, unwanted touching, risqué jokes, or blatant demand for sexual contact. It is also considered sexual harassment when an employer uses sexual comments, requests or behavior when promising or threatening an employee about their job. Sexual harassment also exists when an employee feels the pervasiveness of sexual behavior in the office affects the victim’s feeling of safety or job performance.