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Sex-Abuse Survivors Urge Each Other to Speak Out
The following is from the article written by Alison Bowen, published by Women's eNews:
On April 29, a day that the mayor of Asheville, N.C., has declared "Angela Shelton Day," the filmmaker and actress will report her father's abuse of her as a child online and to police.
Shelton, who is also a major voice in convincing victims to open up about their experiences, will do so as part of a nationwide campaign started last month to launch Report IT, a Web site designed to enable victims of abuse to report their stories anonymously and encourage them to report to authorities.
Rallies are also planned at Barnes and Nobles bookstores nationwide on April 1 calling for women to report being sexually assaulted and coinciding with the release of her autobiography, "Finding Angela Shelton," published by Meredith Books.
Shelton--in partnership with a Chicago group called PAVE: Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment--launched Reportitnow.org at victims' rights rallies in about 30 cities last month timed to the opening of a retrial for the case of Tory Bowen, who was banned from using the word "rape" in a Nebraska trial.
Bowen pressed charges against her alleged rapist but when she testified at his trial, the judge would not allow her to use the word, instructing her even to describe a sexual assault nurse examiner as a "sexual examiner."
April 29 has also been designated by Shelton and PAVE as a day for others to show up at courthouses across the country and report abuse to the authorities. The Web site provides victims with a sample form for a report.
The forms ask the type of abuse, whether the offender is known, whether it was reported, to whom, the reaction and the outcome. The site makes it clear that submitting the online form is anonymous and only the amount of people reporting will be publicly released. Visitors to the Reportitnow.org Web site can donate $50 for a rally toolkit, which includes press releases, photos and step-by-step tips on staging events.
Read the entire story here.
