Sexual Assault Awareness
Content warning: sexual assault topics.
Though it can be a difficult topic, it is important to share educational information about sexual assault, especially in ways that are accessible and useful to the populations that we serve. Often, US Together makes voice recordings and videos that we share with our clients via WhatsApp, as that can be a useful medium for the families we work with. In these recordings and videos, we share important information about sexual assault topics that can benefit them and their children. Our team recognizes that many of our newest neighbors do not speak English at home—which can create barriers to health literacy in the United States—so we strive to make our resources simple and to the point.
Two tips for anyone wishing to share resources with limited English proficiency populations, based on the resource linked above:
Social media is an easy and widely accessible tool, and it can be easy to create social media content that meets the two criteria set by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion: readability and website usability.
Remember that not everyone shares the same experience and understanding of healthcare: depending on a person’s background and culture, their view of health-related topics—especially those related to sexual assault—may be very different from your own. Treat others with respect and sensitivity when approaching such topics.
In this post, you can not only find resources that serve as examples of how to spread awareness of important topics related to sexual assault, but also learn and share these resources with others.
1. Tips for Friends and Families of Sexual Violence Survivors videos
The video below, in English, explains some basic tips for friends and families who are supporting a survivor of sexual violence. This video covers physical safety, medical attention, reporting assaults, and numerous strategies for offering support.
2. Protecting Children from Sexual Abuse
Our Victim’s Services Team put together a video to provide tips on how to protect children from sexual abuse.
3. Consent to Sexual Relation audio files
In the form of audio messages, our team recorded important information about the notion of consent in sexual relationships. The audio messages cover five important elements of consent, including that it is given freely, reversible, informed, given with confidence and interest, and specific and well defined. Click here to download the English script used for the audio messages.