Perspectives on responses to sexual assault

Even the question of what happens to the victim after the initial report is relevant. And, you know, the importance of confidentiality and making sure that everyone’s being treated, you know, fairly. Those are all…

First, [if a friend came to me for advice after an experience of sexual violence] I would ask them what they wanted to do and then based on what they feel or what they want…

The main thing in any type of sexual assault, […] especially if it’s a woman, oftentimes we blame ourselves. I’ve never had that happen to me, but talking to other people who’ve gone through these…

The best advice I can give anyone is to be a listener, but in a non-judgmental way, and just let them tell their truth and their story without pushing them to do something that they…

I would say, like, three major [suggestions], for anyone providing help in these situations are: (1) Check your privilege. Know what that looks like, know who you are, know your position. (2) If you’re not…

There are so many biases that come with different ethnicities, so it is important to listen with an open mind and to remove any biases before someone discloses. As we know, if you don’t feel…

I believe that they [a person supporting a survivor] should definitely just have empathy first and foremost. But I also believe they should be able to be really understanding. I don’t know if the word…

I feel like many people [trying to support a survivor] would just jump to their own experiences thinking that would help the other one. But I feel like sometimes, that’s not needed because it should…

Just to make it clear, when I say “biased,” I’m talking about gender-biased. So […] not to judge the other person from their gender, because some of us have some experiences, and we can actually…

I think being educated about it is important for people that can protect you, like psychologists and more, because they’re educated and they know the fears and they know how to reassure you. Because a…