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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
RECOGNIZING APRIL AS NATIONAL SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH AND APRIL 29th, 2026, AS "DENIM DAY"
WHEREAS, every year, April is recognized as National Sexual Assault Awareness Month; and
WHEREAS, according to national statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly half of women (45.1%) and more than one in six men (16.9%) in the United States have experienced some form sexual violence during their lifetimes; and
WHEREAS, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE), 47% of transgender people experience sexual violence; and
WHEREAS, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), on average, there are 433,648 victims of rape and sexual assault each year in the United States of America (U.S.), and;
WHEREAS, this data also reveals that every 68 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted, and every 9 minutes, that victim is a child; and
WHEREAS, according to RAINN: only 310 of every 1,000 rapes are reported, only 50 of every 1,000 rapes lead to arrest, and only 25 of every 1,000 rapes lead to conviction in the United States of America (U.S.); and
WHEREAS, of sexual abuse cases reported to law enforcement, 93% of juvenile victims knew the perpetrator, 59% were acquaintances, 34% were family members, and 7% were strangers to the victim; and
WHEREAS, among graduate and professional students, 9.7% of females and 2.5% of males experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation; and
WHEREAS, among undergraduate students, 26.4% of females and 6.8% of males experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation; and
WHEREAS, the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care has reported a significant worldwide increase in sexual violence cases since the surge of the COVID-19 pandemic; and
WHEREAS, for the past 24 years, Peace Over Violence, a sexual and domestic violence prevention center headquartered in L...
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