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Facts to
consider
The majority of sexual assaults are not
reported to police.
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According to Statistics Canada,
only 6% of all sexual assaults are
reported to police.
(1)
-
Only 1% of women who have been
sexually assaulted by an
acquaintance report the incident to
police. (2)
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An Alberta study on sexual assault
against people with disabilities
found that while 88% of offenders
are known to the victim (family
members, friends, acquaintances,
caregivers), 80% are never charged
and less than 10% are convicted.
(3)
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In one study, women gave the
following reasons for not reporting
incidents of sexual
assault:
-
belief that the police could do
nothing about it (50% of women gave
this reason);
-
concern about the attitude of both
police and the courts toward sexual
assault (44%);
-
fear of another assault by the
offender (33%);
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fear and shame (64%).
(4)
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Women who have been sexually
assaulted often fear that if they
report a sexual assault, the will
be revictimized by the justice
system.
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For women of colour, and immigrant
and refugee women that fear is
compounded by racism.
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The credibility of women with
disabilities has often been
questioned when they report sexual
assault, particularly in the case
of women with developmental,
psychiatric and learning
disabilities.
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The credibility of sex trade
workers is also often
questioned.
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Incidents of sexual assault are
often questioned by police,
doctors, courts, even family and
friends.
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If a woman is raped by a man she
knows, it is often perceived that
she "asked for it" in some way.
Women often hear, and may tell
themselves, messages such as "what
did you think he wanted," "you
drank with him didn't you," or "you
should have expected something like
this to happen."
REFERENCES
(1) Statistics Canada, "The Violence Against
Women Survey," The Daily,
November 18, 1993.
(2) Diana Russell, Sexual Exploitation: Rape,
Child Abuse and Workplace
Harassment, California: Sage
Publishing, 1984
(3) D. Sobsey, "Sexual Offenses and Disabled
Victims: Research and Practical Implications,"
Vis-A-Vis: A National Newsletter on Family
Violence, 6, no. 4, Winter, 1988. Ottawa:
Canadian Council on Social Development.
(4) Solicitor General of Canada, "Canadian
Urban Victimization Survey," Bulletin 4: Female
Victims of Crime. Ottawa, 1985.
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