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<br />ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> <br />Proclamation <br />“Sexual Assault Awareness Month 2018 Proclamation” <br /> <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center assisted over 675 survivors of sexual <br />violence, their loved ones, and community professionals during 2017; and <br /> <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 17,000 youth and adults each year; and <br /> <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 /> <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 /> <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 /> <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 /> <br />WHEREAS, there are more than 16,500 sex offenders registered as living in North Carolina <br />(Department of Justice, 2015) <br /> <br />WHEREAS, victim-blaming continues to be an enormous problem in instances of rape and <br />sexual assault; and <br /> <br />WHEREAS, the Orange County Rape Crisis Center, a nonprofit 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 /> <br />NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Orange County Board of Commissioners, do <br />hereby proclaim the month of April 2018 as “SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH” <br />and encourage all residents to speak out against sexual violence and to support their local <br />community’s efforts to prevent and respond to these appalling crimes. <br /> <br />This the 3rd day of April 2018. <br /> <br />___________________________________________ <br />Mark Dorosin, Chair <br />Orange County Board of Commissioners <br />3