CC 2018-04-10_06b Proclamation_Sexual Assault Awareness MonthOF
/;I
'lucALIFOR~ '~-~~~
HONORARY PROCLAMATION
DECLARING APRIL 2018 AS
"SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS MONTH"
WHEREAS, "Sexual Assault Awareness Month" calls attention to the fact that sexual violence is
widespread.and impacts every person in Arroyo Grande; and
WHEREAS, rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment harm our community, and statistics show
that one in five women arid one in 71 men will be raped at some point in their lives; and
WHEREAS, child sexual abuse prevention must be a priority to confront the reality that one in six
boys and one in four girls will experience a sexual assault before age 18, and youth ages 12 to 17 are
2.5 times as likely to be victims of sexual violence; and
WHEREAS, the local student population is also at high-risk -nationally one in four women and one
in 16 men are sexually assaulted during their time in college; and
WHEREAS, last year the local organization RISE, which stands for "Respect. Inspire. Support.
Empower.", received 979 crisis calls and sent advocates out 149 times to accompany sexual assault
survivors at Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) medical exams, law enforcement interviews, etc.;
and·
WHEREAS, the number of RISE clients receiving counseling for sexual assault related issues
continues to increase every year, with a total of 2,207 hours of counseling provided at low or no-cost
to community members across the County last year; and
WHEREAS, the theme of this year's "Sexual Assault Awareness Month" campaign is, "Embrace
Your Voice." The campaign promotes language as an agent for change and seeks to empower
individuals and communities to speak up, support survivors, and continue having the difficult but
important conversations about sexual assault; and
WHEREAS, the City of Arroyo Grande joins RISE and other advocates and communities across the
country in taking action to prevent sexual violence, and acknowledges that each day of the year is an
opportunity to create change for the future; and
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that I, Jim Hill, Mayor of the City of Arroyo Grande, on
behalf of the City Council, do hereby proclaim April 2018 as "Sexual Assault Awareness Month".
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the
Seal of the City of Arroyo Grande to be affixed this 10th day of April 2018.
JIM HILL, MAYOR
Item 6.b. - Page 1
THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
Item 6.b. - Page 2