Monday, October 3, 2011

Victimization survey results show over half of the women in Anchorage have experienced intimate partner violence or sexual violence

The 2011 Alaska Victimization Survey results for Anchorage were released October 3 at a press conference at the Anchorage Museum. The troubling numbers show that:
  • Over 50% of adult women in the Municipality of Anchorage have experienced intimate partner violence, sexual violence or both, in their lifetime;
  • Over 8% have experienced intimate partner violence, sexual violence or both, in the past year;
  • Three out of every ten adult women in the Municipality of Anchorage have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime; and 
  • Four out of every ten have experienced intimate partner violence in their lifetime.
The survey was designed to measure the lifetime and past year exposure to sexual violence and intimate partner violence. It was conducted from April 2011 to June 2011 through a contract with the Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (CDVSA), with supplemental funding from the Governor's Choose Respect initiative to end the epidemic of domestic violence and sexual assault in Alaska.  Respondents were randomly selected by phone (using both land lines and cellphones).  Details of the survey results are at http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/justice/avs/.

Pictured after the after Anchorage press conference left to right: Lauree Morton, Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Executive Director (CDVSA); Nancy Haag, Standing Together Against Rape (STAR) Executive Director; Dr. André Rosay, UAA Justice Center Director; Susan Cushing, CDVSA Chair; Katie TePas, Special Assistant to Governor Sean Parnell’s Choose Respect Initiative; Sgt. Ken McCoy, Anchorage Police Department (APD); Amanda Matthews Abused Women’s Aid in Crisis (AWAIC) Program Manager; Melissa Emmal, AWAIC Deputy Director; Suzi Pearson, AWAIC Executive Director; and Lt. Dave Parker, APD.

Below are links to the media coverage of this event: