Sexual assault is never the survivors fault.

“I always tell survivors when I meet them at the emergency room - We wouldn’t be here if someone else had just made a different choice. I don’t need to know a thing about what happened to know that it wasn’t your fault.” - local advocate

Survivors are not to blame for the violence or abuse they experience. Responsibility lies with the people who chose to use violence and the culture that protects them from accountability.

Anyone can be sexually assaulted.

People of all genders, all abilities and all backgrounds can be sexually assaulted. And sexual assault is not uncommon - someone is assaulted every 73 seconds in this country.

We are committed to listening to survivors who are often silenced and made invisible - including poor people, queer and trans people, BIPOC, people with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, and military members.

There is no right way to respond to an experience of violence.

Survivors are the experts of their own experience. Any response to violence and trauma is valid. Survivors deserve care - and to be given options and resources to choose their own path forward.

Survivors are not defined by what happened to them.

We are in awe of the countless survivors who find a way to move toward healing - the journeys that they take and the ways they often struggle along the way. Here is one survivors story…

If you have been sexually assaulted - you are not alone.

Or email us with any questions: kiona@vtnetwork.org