What is Sexual Violence/Misconduct?

Sexual violence is the general term we use to describe any kind of unwanted sexual act or activity, including rape, sexual assault, sexual abuse, and many others. The term does not always include physical contact; revenge porn, sending unwanted nude images, and making unwanted sexual comments are all examples that fall under the heading of sexual violence. Sexual violence can happen to anyone regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, class or background.

Rape Myths

There are many myths surrounding sexual violence, partly due to messages we receive from film, TV and the media. A common example of a myth is that rape is committed by strangers, when recent crime survey data suggests as many as 90% of survivors knew their perpetrator.

Another example of a rape myth would be that many people make up false allegations, when research shows only about 4% of rapes reported to the police are false, and the vast majority of survivors never report it at all.

A third myth is that sexual violence always leaves the survivor with physical injuries, but it’s actually quite rare to be left with physical injuries.

There are many more examples and you can find more information online from Rape Crisis.