Why You Should be Concerned about Acquaintance and Date Rape:

• It could happen to you. Anyone can be raped regardless of age, appearance, ethnicity, lifestyle, or income level.
• Rape is one of the fastest growing violent crimes in the US. The FBI estimates that at least one in three women will suffer a violent sexual assault at some point in their lives.
• Rapes are committed anywhere and anytime. Most occur between people who know each other. The location is sually in familiar settings where the victim feels secure, such as homes, residence halls, parties, and dances.
• Acquaintance rape is forced intercourse by someone you know.
• Date rape is forced intercourse by someone with whom one has held an ongoing social relationship.
• Victims of acquaintance and date rape tend to feel more ashamed, guilty, depressed, and angry with themselves than do victims of unknown assailants.
• College women are more likely to be raped by a friend or fellow student than by a stranger.
• One out of four college women are victims of rape or attempted rape.
• Rape is not motivated by sexual desire. It is motivated by anger, contempt for women, and the need to dominate, control, and humiliate. The rapist gets high on the sense of power they feel from seeing another human being powerless. Any positive sexual feelings are absent.
• The most frequent time for acquaintance rape to occur is the victim’s freshman year at college. The second most frequent time is the summer between high school and college.
• 84% of victims know their attackers.
• More than half the rapes happened on dates.
• 75% of the men and 55% of the women involved in rapes had been drinking or taking drugs.
• One in 12 men has admitted to acts legally defined as rape.
• Only 5% of rapes are reported to the police.
• 30% of rape victims have contemplated suicide.
• 41% of the victims expected to be raped again.

Help prevent date rape. Know the people you date. Do not let yourself be put in a risky situation. Always have a friend who knows where you are and how long you will be gone.

Prevention

• Educate yourself concerning crime prevention tactics involving rape.
• Consider in advance what you would do if confronted by a potential rapist.
• Early planning is most overlooked. Plan activities so they are varied. Never walk the same way twice in a row. Do not make it a habit to leave your residence hall every day at the same time.
• Make sure the path you take is well lighted.
• Avoid situations in which you feel uncomfortable or threatened.
• Avoid being alone in places such as parking lots, residence halls, laundry rooms, and vacant campus buildings.

On Campus

• Use the shuttle bus service.
• Be aware of other people around you. Stay alert.
• Do not walk alone.
• Inform the person you intend to visit of your expected arrival time.
• Be brief and business-like with strangers that stop you for directions. Do not feel you have to be polite to those who annoy you on the street, in a bar, or at a party. The more self-confident, strong, and assertive you appear, the less likely you are to be considered a target.
• If you are a witness or a victim to voyeurs or exhibitionists, notify the EKU Police immediately.
• If you are a victim of any crime, notify the EKU Police immediately.
• Familiarize yourself with the local community in which you now live.

Residence Halls

• Lock your doors at all times, even if you are just going to the restroom and especially while you are sleeping.
• Take showers while there are others on the floor.
• Do not prop open exterior doors or open them for others.
• Do not invite anyone you do not know well into your room.
• Report suspicious behavior or strangers who cannot adequately account for their presence to your RA or the EKU Police.
• Do not open your door to strangers.
• Turn on an overhead light as you enter a room.
• Keep shades or curtains closed after dark.
• If you lose your room key, notify your senior hall staff immediately.
• Require identification of repairmen who are not escorted by hall staff.

Walking

• Do not overload yourself with books or packages. Try to keep your hands free.
• If you think someone is following you, cross the street, walk faster, or even walk down the middle of the street. Try to get to a lighted area, public place, or to a group of people.
• Avoid areas overgrown with trees, weeds, and shrubbery.
• Avoid walking alone when you are intoxicated, upset, or depressed.
• Never hitchhike or accept rides from strangers. If a car approaches and you are threatened, walk in the opposite direction of the vehicle.
• Walk with an air of confidence and aggressiveness.
• Carry keys clenched in your fist, with sharp edges protruding out through your fingers.
• Always have keys ready to open the door. Do not fumble through bags or pockets for long periods of time. This diverts your attention away from your surroundings.

Driving

• Have keys ready and available when approaching your vehicle.
• If you notice strangers loitering nearby, do not go to your vehicle without an escort.
• Check the front and rear seats before entering your vehicle. If you find evidence of intrusion, leave and call the police.
• If you have trouble, remain in your vehicle with the flashers flashing. Request help through a crack in the window or blow the horn. Ask anyone who stops to contact the nearest service station or the police department.
• Make sure your vehicle is in good working order with a sufficient supply of gasoline when you are traveling.

Dates

• You always have the right to say no and have your wishes respected no matter where you are, who you are with, how far you have gone, or what you have done on other occcassions.
• No one really loses control.
• No one has the right to force you into sex and no one deserves to be raped…EVER!
• Don’t be afraid to say no and mean it. Think about yourself and your own feelings.
• Communicate clearly what you mean. Say what you mean, mean what you say. If you say no, mean no. If you say yes, mean yes. Declare your choices about sex, about what you will and will not do, and what you expect from others.