You Are Not Alone: Sexual Assault Awareness Month and the Power of Community
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and at Survivors to Superheroes, we’re using this time to do what we always do: show up, speak out, and stand together.
Sexual violence does not exist in a vacuum. It lives inside systems– systems that have long decided whose pain is visible, whose story is believed, and whose healing is resourced. This April, as we mark Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM), we want to hold all of that truth at once: the personal and the political, the individual journey and the collective fight.
Because awareness, without action, isn’t enough. And solidarity, without support, isn’t enough. So this is both a moment to be seen, and a map toward something more.
The Reality We’re Living In
The numbers are sobering. Every 68 seconds, an American is sexually assaulted, and every 9 minutes, that victim is a child. 1 out of every 6 American women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime, and about 1 in 33 men has experienced an attempted or completed rape in his lifetime (RAINN).
But those numbers do not capture the full picture. They don’t account for the survivors who never report. The communities where coming forward carries added danger. The people whose stories are disbelieved because of their race, gender identity, immigration status, or disability. And particularly the youngest survivors, whose voices and experiences we center at Survivors to Superheroes.
We know that sexual violence does not impact all communities equally. 1 in 5 Black and African American women experience rape in their lifetime, and only 1 in 15 who are assaulted ever report it to law enforcement. 1 in 2 American Indian and Alaska Native women have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime (Fairfax County Family Services / CDC & NISVS data). Transgender people are over four times more likely than cisgender people to experience violent victimization, including rape and sexual assault (Charlie Health), according to a 2021 study by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law. Approximately 60% of Black girls experience sexual abuse by age 18 (End Rape on Campus).
A truly survivor-centered movement has to reckon with all of that. It has to center the most impacted, not just the most visible. That’s the kind of community Survivors to Superheroes is building.
For Survivors: You Are Believed Here
If you are a survivor, recent or long ago, openly out or privately carrying this, we want you to know something first: this is not your shame to hold. What happened to you was not your fault. And your healing, in whatever form it takes, belongs to you.
There is no timeline. No “right way.”
We’ve built our resources with you in mind, not as a checklist, but as a collection of doors you can open whenever you’re ready:
- Right after an assault: Our Immediately After Sexual Assault guide walks you through your options: medical, legal, and emotional, gently, and without pressure to do any of it a certain way.
- Your mental health matters: Whether you’re processing trauma, searching for a therapist, or just trying to get through the day, our Mental Health resources are here, including a map of Mental Health Centers in New York for those who need local support.
- If you’re thinking about the legal process: Reporting, or not, is always your choice. Our Sexual Violence and the Legal System section is there to help you understand your options without pressure.
- Telling your story on your own terms: If you feel called to speak or write about what you’ve lived through, our Safe Ways to Share Your Story resource helps you do that in a way that protects you.
And if you need someone to talk to right now, please reach out to the National Sexual Assault Hotline: 1-800-656-4673 — free, confidential, and available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
For the People Who Love Survivors
You showed up. That matters more than you know.
If someone in your life has shared their experience with you, you don’t have to have the right words. You just have to stay. Listen. Believe them. Follow their lead.
We have resources specifically for loved ones: for parents, partners, friends, and siblings, because the people who support survivors also need support.
Awareness Has to Mean Action
SAAM exists to break the silence. But silence isn’t the only barrier survivors face. There are systems, like underfunded crisis centers, inaccessible mental health care, legal processes that re-traumatize, and cultural stigmas that keep people from coming forward, that need to change.
Being an ally to survivors this month means asking who in your community doesn’t have access to support. It means amplifying survivor-led organizations. It means supporting the work of people building real infrastructure for healing, the kind that reaches people who’ve historically been left out.
At Survivors to Superheroes, we’re committed to that kind of work: education, advocacy, community-building, and creating space for survivors not just to recover, but to rise.
Come Be Part of This
We started as a mother-daughter team, finding our way through the aftermath of assault, and then grew into something bigger. Today, we are an international community of writers, advocates, educators, and survivors who refuse to let their experiences be the end of their story.
We use the word “superhero” not because healing is easy, or because strength is required of you. We use it because surviving, in all of its complicated and deeply human forms, is extraordinary. And because community makes us more than we could ever be alone.
This April, we see you. We stand with you. And whenever you’re ready, we’re here.
👉 Explore resources for survivors
👉 Support resources for loved ones
👉 Join our community
👉 Read more on our blog
If you or someone you know needs support, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 (US, available 24/7) or 1-888-407-4747 (US/Canada). You are not alone.
Content note: This post discusses sexual violence. Please read at your own pace and take care of yourself.