San Diego Police provides extensive information on personal safety.  The following section of this website outlines additional information on sexual assault: 

Rape: Fact vs Fiction

Assaults Against Women*

• 87% of all sexual assault victims are female.
• Nationally, every 2-3 minutes a woman is sexually assaulted.
• Victims range in age from infants to elderly.
• The single most effective strategy used to stop an assault is an immediate physical and verbal response.

National Facts on Sexual Assault*

683,000 forcible rapes occur every year, according to the National Women's study.  This means:

• 59,916 rapes per month
• 1,971 rapes per day
• 78 rapes per hour
• 1.3 rapes per minute

*Source:  http://www.rape101.com/handouts/sexual_assault_facts.htm

There are many misconceptions about sexual assault. People in every segment of society have developed their own "ideas" about rape and rape victims. The "blame it on the victim" attitude makes it difficult for the victim to seek help and to begin the recovery process. It is through the myths and misconceptions about rape that not only do many women increase their chances of becoming a victim, but many others are allowed to turn the victim into the villain.

Here are some of the common and inappropriate beliefs about rape:

• Fiction: Rape won’t happen to me or someone I know.
• Fact: One in every six women you know will be a victim of a sexual assault. Men, women and children...old people, young people...people from every socioeconomic group, every religion have been victimized. Rape is the most unreported crime in the United States. It occurs every 1.3 minutes.

• Fiction: Rape does not happen at schools like ours.
• Fact: A rape can occur at any school. The potential is everywhere. The threat can come from people on or off campus.

• Fiction: The rapist is almost always a stranger to the victim.
• Fact: Most women are raped by someone they know–a date, an acquaintance, a neighbor, a relative. These rapes generally go unreported. In fact, almost half of these rapes never get reported. Any woman forced into having sex against her wishes has been victimized by rape. If the rape occurs with a friend or relative, the victim often feels somewhat "responsible" for the act, is unwilling to "confess" it to others, and is discouraged from seeking professional help.

• Fiction: Men rape because they want sex. They are usually frustrated because they have limited opportunities for sex. Many are maniacs or psychopaths.
• Fact: The motivation for rape is the need to have power and to control. Forcing a woman to have sex against her will is an act of aggression and violence. The rapist is angry and feels the need to dominate and uses sex as his weapon.

• Fiction: Women really want to be raped. They "ask for it" by the way they dress or act.
• Fact: No person ever wants to be a victim of a violent, life-threatening act. Sexual assault victims are usually in a state of shock after a sexual assault.  They are unsure about what to do and whom to tell.  This reaction may last for several hours or several days.
• Fear, shame, anger, loss of trust, detached calm, and depression are common reactions but vary with each sexual assault survivor.*

Resource List

On Campus-

• Department of Public Safety, 619.849.2525
• Wellness Center Counseling/Health Services, 619.849.2574
• Associate Dean of Residential Life, 619.849.2480

Off Campus-

• Rape and Battered Women’s Helpline, 619.233.3088
• Rape and Battered Women’s Legal Clinic And Counseling Services, 619.233.8984
• San Diego Police Department, 619.531.2000