CDC Finds More Women Are Suffering From Sexual Violence

Disturbing statistics from the Center for Disease Control show that nearly one in five women has been raped or experienced an attempted rape, one in six women has been a victim of stalking, and one in four women reported being beaten by their partner. What’s interesting is that many of these sexual assaults occur before the age of 18 and lead to physical and mental health problems. At a time when there are so many opportunities to express oneself, are we shocked by the high numbers? What are we doing wrong when it comes to ending violence against women and girls? We focus on teaching women to avoid rapists and abusers outside the home. But do we let them know about close family members or friends who might pose the same threat at home?

Note: The original post raised the question of how we can teach men and boys NOT to be abusers/rapists, but your revision removed that and added a second question about how to teach women/girls how to avoid assault . We want to avoid blaming victims or putting women in charge of safety. Rape and violence are not gender issues and we should be more critical of those who commit the crimes than those who are victims, right? Traditional reporting (and schools and police departments and even conventional wisdom) says, “Hey, women, here’s how to play it safe!” We can stand out as a more progressive, thoughtful voice by saying, ” Hey, men? Don’t be rapists and abusers.” Although this is not an explicitly feminist website, the editorial voice is pro-women.

The Center for Disease Control has released some disturbing new statistics about assault and abuse against women and girls: About one in five women have been raped or experienced an attempted rape, one in six women have been stalked, and one in four reported being beaten by their intimate partner. Many of these sexual assaults occur before the age of 18 and result in physical and mental health problems. Are we shocked by the high numbers? What are we doing wrong when it comes to ending violence against women and girls? We focus on rapists and abusers outside the home, but are we protecting ourselves from family members or friends who may pose the same threat? And while we spend a lot of time talking about how to keep women and girls safe, are we educating our men and boys NOT to rape and abuse?