Knowledge is power!

Knowledge IS Power

As my bio states, I advocate for victims of sexual assault and domestic abuse. The reason I am so passionate about those subjects is because I am a survivor of domestic abuse and my daughter, Jessica, is a survivor of rape. My experience happened more than forty years ago. Her experience was just six years ago. Together, we speak to women’s organizations; our focus being how law enforcement protocols and societal mindsets affect both crime statistics and the way survivors heal.

In March, Jess and I spoke to a local group, where the attendance usually numbers around 50 women. Not so this day. Many a chair was empty, which surprised me and incensed me. More than once I asked my daughter, “What message are we being sent? Are women so foolish as to think that they can’t be victims?”

Here are some statistics that bear repeating:

• Nine out of 10 victims are female

• Less than 35 percent of rapes are committed by strangers. Rapists are often someone familiar to but not personally known by the victim.

• One in 6 women and one in 33 men will experience attempted or completed rape.

• Fifteen percent of victims are under the age of 12

• Thirty five percent of victims are assaulted in their own homes

• Almost 65 percent of rapes go unreported.

• Only 6 percent of rapists will ever spend a day in.

Safety is an illusion but it is one we can turn into a reality if we take responsibility for our own security.

• Use the same precautions when taking your trash to the curb as you do when going out for the evening.

• Know where you are going. Familiarize yourself with the area/location if possible.

• Question security decisions made by apartment complex management, places of business, public venues, etc. 

• If you don’t feel safe, act! Put an extra lock on the door and use it. 

• Never assume that repairmen, groundskeepers, maintenance workers or co-workers are “safe.” Too often employers fail to do background and/or past employment checks. 

• Lock your doors and windows! 

Remember: 55% - 61% of serial rapists spend time monitoring the behavior of potential victims. Make it as hard as possible for them to single you out. No precaution is 100% foolproof but being prepared can give you the advantage should trouble arise.

Getting back to the luncheon – before leaving the venue quite a few women approached us to say that they had been leery to attend due to the subject matter. Now that they had heard us speak, they were happy they had come. Jessica and I were happy as well. If even one woman is spared the horror of assault, we have succeeded.

If you have been a victim of rape or domestic abuse and need help, please contact the PBC Office of Victim Services at (561) 355-2418. 

Visit The Beacon Magazine online and read more articles by Donna Carbone in her monthly column "The View from My Pedestal."