April is national Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) and the Butler County Rape Crisis Program is encouraging the community to use the event as an opportunity to have an open discussion about the violence of sexual assault.
"Sexual assault is an issue that is gradually becoming more accepted in terms of being able to talk about it in the community, but it is still a taboo subject," said Becky Perkins, director of the Butler County Rape Crisis Program. "The more it is kept in the dark the harder it is for victims to come forward and for us to have an honest discussion on how we can stop the violence and prevent it from happening. (SAAM) is a nice nationally sanctioned excuse to bring attention to something that really needs the attention."
The Butler County Rape Crisis Program is holding a conference, titled "Sexual Trauma Victims & Offenders," April 30 for citizens, students and professionals to raise awareness and knowledge on the issue.
The conference will host a variety of speakers on topics such as the science of trauma, the truths about sex offenders and understanding victim response.
"We tried to come up with a lot of different topics for the conference that would appeal to community members, students and professionals in the field," Perkins said.
The conference will also recognize local agencies and professionals in the area for their work with victims.
Among those receiving accolades will be two Miami University Police Department members, Chief John McCandless and Captain Jason Willis.
"I'm very proud of what we do and how we handle that type of crime," McCandless said.
Last year MUPD, working with Butler County Rape Crisis Program, created a room for victims of sexual assault to be interviewed with comfortable sitting, lamps and prints on the walls.
"We wanted to have place for people who are victims of those types of crime to have a more comfortable environment to talk in," McCandless said.
McCandless said it is a departmental effort that has helped MUPD achieve this recognition.
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"I'm proud of the whole department," McCandless said. "I think this is the type of award that reflects the attitude and actions of all the men and women of MUPD."
According to Perkins, Sexual Assault Awareness month offers a way to reach out to victims and have open discussion.
"This is something that happens a lot and it is not something talked about openly enough," Perkins said. "We want people in (the) community to realize sexual assault is something that happens to a lot of people whether we know it or not. It is something we need to take seriously and try to prevent."
Perkins said that while there are many programs and education options for prevention, they mainly focus on how people can protect themselves from strangers. According to Perkins, 90 percent of sexual assault happens by an acquaintance of the victim and this is harder to prevent.
"A lot of prevention tips we give to women are to keep people safe from strangers' attack," Perkins said. "If something does happen to a woman she is left questioning herself ... If we really want to prevent sexual assault we have to talk about the dynamics that go into it."
McCandless said he hopes anyone who is sexually assaulted can come forward and trust the law enforcement agencies to handle it in a manner most appropriate for the victim.
"I would encourage people who are victims of those crimes, if they are comfortable, to report them to us," McCandless said. "We treat all victims with respect and dignity. We really want to work with them to help them in way possible."
The Butler County Rape Crisis Program provides a 24-hour hotline for anyone in the county, including Miami students, according to Perkins.
"(County residents) can call for confidential support if they have been sexually assaulted and need to talk or if they need advice on how to help that friend," Perkins said.
The program is currently looking for volunteers for its May training program, in which Perkins said the program will train 20 to 30 volunteers to assist the staff in providing support around the clock.
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