Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />Proclamation <br />"Sexual Assault Awareness Month" <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center assisted over 600 survivors of sexual <br />violence, their loved ones, and community professionals during 2014; and <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center works with the County's two school <br />systems and other groups to provide students with age - appropriate information about violence <br />prevention, reaching over 14,800 youth and adults each year; and <br />WHEREAS, the coordination of the Orange County Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) is <br />bringing together members of law enforcement, the medical community, the legal system, and <br />other community advocates to improve services for survivors of sexual assault who come <br />forward; and <br />WHEREAS, 1 in 5 American women have been sexually assaulted at some point in their lives <br />(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010); and <br />WHEREAS, in the United States rape is the most costly crime to its survivors, totaling $127 <br />billion a year considering factors such as medical cost, lost earnings, pain, suffering, and lost <br />quality of life (U.S. Department of Justice, 1996); and <br />WHEREAS, in the United States 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have experienced some form of <br />sexual or physical violence committed by an intimate partner (Centers for Disease Control and <br />Prevention, 2010); and <br />WHEREAS, there are more than 15,000 sex offenders registered as living in North Carolina <br />(Department of Justice, 2014); and <br />WHEREAS, victim - blaming continues to be an enormous problem in instances of rape and <br />sexual assault; and <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center, a non - profit agency that has served this <br />community since 1974, is working to stop sexual violence and its impact through support, <br />education, and advocacy; <br />NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that we, the Orange County Board of Commissioners, <br />do hereby proclaim the month of April 2015 as "SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS <br />MONTH" and encourage all residents to speak out against sexual violence and to support their <br />local community's efforts to prevent and respond to these appalling crimes. <br />This the 7TH day of April 2015. <br />Earl McKee, Chair <br />Orange County Board of Commissioners <br />