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Myths vs. Facts About Sexual Violence
- Shilpa Pokkuluri
- Feb 20, 2021
- 2 min read
Updated: Feb 22, 2021
Myth 1: Most sexual assaults are committed by strangers.
Fact 1: Most victims know the perpetrator - a neighbor, friend, co-worker, spouse, acquaintance, classmate, partner or ex-partner. Research has shown that 80% of women reporting sexual assaults knew the perpetrator.
Myth 2: Men are not victims of sexual violence.
Fact 2: 1.5% of all men have been raped and 47% of bisexual men have experienced some form of unwanted sexual contact in their lifetime. Sexually assault of men is thought to be greatly underreported. Any man can be sexually assaulted regardless of size, strength, sexual orientation, or appearance.
Myth 3: Victims provoke sexual assaults when they dress provocatively or act in a promiscuous manner.
Fact 3: Sexual assault is NEVER the victim's fault. The victim's behavior and appearance do not mean they are consenting to sexual activity.
Myth 4: There is no reason for a victim not to report being raped to law enforcement.
Fact 4: Many reasons exist for why victims feel they cannot report being raped to law enforcement, such as being afraid of their attackers coming back to re-attack, fear of not being believed, fear of being blamed, feeling shame or embarrassed, believing there is a lack of evidence, wanting to protect the attacker, and pressure from others not to tell.
Myth 5: Women falsely accuse men of sexual assault or "cry rape."
Fact 5: It is extremely rare that women falsely excuse men of sexual assault or rape. In fact, FBI statistics show that only 2% of reported rapes are false, which is the same rate of false reporting as other major crime reports.
Myth 6: People with disabilities are at low risk for sexual assault.
Fact 6: People with disabilities are victims of sexual assault twice as much as people without disabilities.
Myth 7: If a person is aroused when they are assaulted, then it is not really sexual assault.
Fact 7: Orgasm does not mean that someone “enjoyed” the sex, or that they wanted it. Orgasm can be a natural biological reaction that someone can’t control. It does not mean that forced or coerced sexual activity was consensual.
Myth 8: Members of the LGBTQ community are less likely to experience sexual violence.
Fact 8: Members of the LGBTQ community are at a greater risk of experiencing sexual violence. Forty-seven percent of respondents to the 2015 US Transgender Survey said they had been sexually assaulted at some point in their lives.
Myth 9: Getting help is expensive for survivors of assault.
Fact 9: Services such as counseling and advocacy are offered for free or at a low cost by sexual assault service providers.
Myth 10: Married people cannot experience sexual assault and rape by their spouses.
Fact 10: Marital rape is defined as forced sex or the demanding of sex without consent with one's spouse. It is illegal in the United States, but it still occurs and is a serious problem prevalent in our society today.
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