The Regina and Area Sexual Assault Centre (RSAC) is calling for more action against sexual violence.
To mark sexual violence awareness week in Saskatchewan, the RSAC will be spreading its message with information, examples of actions people can take and materials such as pens, pins and stickers promoting the “Choose to See” awareness campaign.
The campaign was launched last year by the Coalition of Regional Sexual Assault Centres of Saskatchewan — the RSAC, the Saskatoon Sexual Assault and Information Centre and the Battlefords and Area Sexual Assault Centre.
“We challenged our communities to think about the ways sexualized violence impacts people’s lives, often in unspoken and unseen ways,” the RSAC said in a media release. “This campaign reached over 43,000 people online and was displayed over 108,000 times on digital billboards across Saskatchewan.
“For 2023, we’re building on that momentum and awareness and challenging our community not just to choose to see, but to choose to act.”
According to the RSAC, Saskatchewan’s rate of sexual violence is the second-highest among the provinces and is nearly double the national average. However, estimates in Canada show only six per cent of sexual assaults are reported.
To help the victims, the RSAC provided more than 1,300 hours of counselling to more than 800 individuals in 2022.
“When we acknowledge and understand the ways sexualized violence impacts individuals, we have a choice to make,” RSAC executive director Lisa Miller said in the release. “Do we simply see and accept the inequity? Or do we speak up, stand up, and choose to act?
“We really want individuals to think about how their actions, unconscious biases, and social circles can either contribute to maintaining a culture of harm, or a culture of change.”
More information about the Choose to See campaign can be found here.