Rape Survivor to ‘Speak Up’ on Trauma of Sexual Assault As Part of Month-long Public Awareness Campaign
 
Rape survivor Eunice Ruiz will be the guest speaker at “Speak Up. Speak Out,” Thursday, April 22 at noon in the Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi University Center, Oso Room 221.

Ruiz’s appearance is sponsored by A&M-Corpus Christi’s Women’s Center for Education and Service and the Family Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Center of South Texas, in conjunction with a month-long public awareness campaign by the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault (TAASA).

According to the National Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center (NCVRTC) in South Carolina, more than 330,000 rapes occur each year in Texas. Nationwide, it is estimated that 683,000 females and 92,700 males were forcibly raped in 2003. Although only an estimated five percent of rapes are reported, the number appears to be climbing each year.

NCVRTC statistics show that more than two-thirds of the victims are both females and males under the age of 18 who have been raped in a home by someone they knew. About 1.8 million teenagers have already been victims of serious sexual assault and 39 percent of young girls interviewed say they are sexually harassed at school on a daily basis. In a confidential NCVRTC survey, 35 percent of male college students admitted they would commit rape if they knew they could get away with it and one in five female college students reported that they have been forced to have sexual intercourse.

A representative from TAASA will also be on hand to provide information on services available in theCorpus Christi area. The event is free and open to the public.