Victimization survey results show over half of the adult women in the Bristol Bay region have experienced intimate partner violence or sexual violence

The results of the 2011 Victimization Survey for the Bristol Bay region were released at a press conference on October 12 in Dillingham.  The troubling numbers show that:

• Over 50% of adult women in the Bristol Bay Region have experienced intimate partner violence, sexual violence or both, in their lifetime;
•  Nearly 15% have experienced intimate partner violence, sexual violence or both, in the past year;
• 3 out of every 10 adult women in the Bristol Bay Region have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime; and 
• 4 out of every 10 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 in the Dillingham Census Area, the Lake and Peninsula Borough, and the Bristol Bay Borough 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 are available at: http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/justice/avs/

This press conference was held jointly by Safe & Fear-Free Environment, Inc. (SAFE), the Bristol Bay Native Association, the Council on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, and the UAA Justice Center.

More Information:
For more background on this project, visit http://www.uaa.alaska.edu/justice/avs/
For more information about CDVSA, visit http://www.dps.state.ak.us/CDVSA/
For more information about SAFE, visit http://www.besafeandfree.org/

Below are links to media coverage of this event:

"Survey Reveals Bristol Bay Intimate Partner Violence Numbers" (audio 5:13) by Daysha Eaton (KDLG Public Radio for Southwest Alaska, 12 Oct 2011).