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ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br />Proclamation <br />"Sexual Assault Awareness Month Proclamation" <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center assisted 434 survivors of sexual violence <br />and their family members, friends and loved ones during the 2004 - 2005 fiscal year; and <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center works with the county's two school <br />systems to provide all students with age-appropriate information about sexual assault <br />prevention, reaching 9,007 children and youth during the 2004 - 2005 school year; and <br />WHEREAS, the coordination of the Orange County Sexual Assault Response Team (BART) is <br />bringing together law enforcement, the medical community, the legal system and other <br />community advocates to improve services for survivors of sexual assault; and <br />WHEREAS, 1 in 5 North Carolina women have been sexually assaulted at some point in <br />their lives (NC Department of Nealth and Numan Services, 1999); 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 <br />lost quality of life (U.S Department of Justice, 1996); and <br />WHEREAS, in the United States, 1 in b women and 1 in 33 men have experienced a <br />completed or attempted rape at some time in their life (US Department of Justice, 1998); <br />and <br />WHEREAS, persons with disabilities in North Carolina experience sexual assault at a rate 4 <br />times higher than persons without disabilities (Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, <br />2000-2001); and <br />WHEREAS, there are 5,915 sex offenders and sexual predators registered as living in North <br />Carolina (State Bureau of Investigation, 2002); and <br />WHEREAS, the blaming of the victim continues to be an enormous problem in instances of <br />rape and sexual assault; and <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center, anon-profit, volunteer agency which <br />has been serving this community since 1974, is working with others in the community to <br />stop sexual violence and its impact through support, education and advocacy; <br />NOW, THEREFORE BE Ii RESALVED that we, the Orange County Board of Commissioners, <br />do hereby proclaim the month of April 2006 as "SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH" <br />and encourage all Orange County residents to speak out against sexual violence and to <br />support their local communities' efforts to prevent and respond to these appalling <br />crimes. <br />This the 10~h day of April 2006 <br />Barry Jacobs, Chair <br />Orange County Board of Commissioners <br />