~by Paul D. Pate, Iowa Secretary of State
There are some topics that are difficult to discuss. One of those topics is sexual assault. April is nationally recognized as Sexual Assault Awareness Month and provides an opportunity for us to embrace uncomfortable conversations to support victims of this crime.
Every 68 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted. Nationwide, 81 percent of women and 43 percent of men have reported experiencing some form of sexual assault and/or harassment in their lifetime. More than 736 million women and girls have experienced intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence worldwide. Sexual assault can happen to anyone, anywhere – from famous movie actors to college students.
It happens here in Iowa, too. It’s hard to know exactly how many Iowans have been impacted by sexual violence because many survivors do not report the crimes, but over the last few years, studies have found between one in six and one in eight Iowa women have reported experiencing sexual assault.
This is why I’m asking Iowans to join me in raising awareness about the impact of this crime, even if it can be difficult to talk about. There are several ways that Iowans can participate in Sexual Assault Awareness Month, but one simple way is to wear denim on Denim Day – April 24.
Denim Day is a response to an incident in which a young woman was sexually assaulted while wearing jeans. The court eventually overturned the conviction of the perpetrator, stating the jeans as the factor. Reasoning being, because the woman was wearing tight jeans, she must have helped remove them, so it must have been consensual activity. Enraged by this outcome, activists launched Denim Day in protest – to remind people everywhere that no choice in clothing is an invitation to sexual violence.
I encourage Iowans to wear denim in support of Denim Day and use it as an opportunity to have conversations about this difficult topic. During these conversations, there are many organizations and resources in our state you can share that support survivors of sexual violence and sexual assault.
My office administers Iowa’s Safe at Home Program, which is an address confidentiality program for Iowans who have been impacted by violent crimes, from sexual assault and domestic violence to stalking and human trafficking.
Programs like Safe at Home are extremely important to supporting survivors of these crimes – because every Iowan should feel Safe at Home. This program provides survivors with a legal substitute address that can be used in place of a physical address. Every public and private entity in the state is required to accept this address.
Participants in the program also have access to mail forwarding services and confidential voter registration and absentee ballot voting in all eligible elections.
Safe at Home is just one of many resources out there for Iowans who have been impacted by this crime. Look to the Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault (ICASA), National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC), and RAINN for more information.
If you are someone you know has been impacted by sexual assault, call the Iowa Victim Service Call Center at 1-800-770-1650 or text ‘IOWAHELP’ to 20121.
