Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Floor Speech

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Mrs. CAPITO. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for bringing highlight to an issue that we all feel a certain sadness that has to be highlighted. I am sorry for his personal tragedy for his niece, and I wish her much healing and a bright future for her.

I rise today to, too, speak, as he did, about April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

As we know, sexual assault can happen to anyone, regardless of gender, age, race, or religion, and it is always heartbreaking. Those are the ones that we actually hear about. Many go unreported. So we must say ``no more,'' no more to sexual assault and the culture of silence and shame.

One in six women in this country have been sexually assaulted, most by someone they know. Hence, the area of deeply troubling behaviors in the realm of domestic violence.

College women have an even higher rate of sexual victimization than most women in the United States. Our colleges and universities can and must play an important role in stopping sexual assault and joining this campaign in April by saying ``no more'' to sexual assault. This must be a priority in every college campus in America.

As a mother of a daughter and now a grandmother of a daughter and also two sons who were lucky enough to go to college, I want to make sure that when they are on those college campuses they are safe and that they know how to get help and that they know how to recognize the signals that they might be getting into trouble.

Many of those affected with sexual assault struggle with depression, drug and alcohol abuse, or even thoughts of suicide. We have to make sure that they know they are not to blame and that help is available.

So many people care. Local organizations, like the local Charleston YWCA, which runs the Resolve Family Abuse Program, with which I was an active board member for many years, they stand ready to help. They have counseling programs, they have residential programs, they have programs for batterers, programs to try to alleviate the scourge of domestic violence.

We in Congress have passed laws to provide Federal funding for programs and organizations to help women seeking help from domestic abuse, stalking, and sexual assault.

I will continue to work to help the men and women affected by these heinous crimes and am proud to stand here today and say ``no more'' to sexual assault.

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