How to Reach Out to a Rape Victim

Stop rape now.

Rape is a very serious and heinous crime that many women will experience in their lifetime. Some rape victims feel as though they have wronged someone and duly believe that's why they have been raped. On the same note, many rape victims need that first shoulder to cry on whether it be a family member or a close friend. Nearly 60% of all rape victims will not go to the police first, they will talk to the first person that will listen to them but at the same time they won't get into trouble for talking to.

Instructions

1. Build a trust bond between you and the victim. The first thing you should do when you have stumbled upon a rape victim is to create the trust bond so that you can get them to talk out their feelings. Being that many rape victims generally don't like to talk about what happened to them, establishing trust can be hard to do. While it may be hard, creating trust can be at least attempted by carrying an open mind, open heart and open ears.

2. Remember confidentiality. Next, once a rape victim has begun to place a little trust in you, everything you talk about is valued. When talking about something as sensitive as a rape, you must remember that you can't talk about your conversation with the victim to anyone, not even your family or even the police. It is recommended that you keep your conversations between you and the victim confidential, because if you don't, you could destroy the trust you have established between you and the victim.

3. Make yourself available to the victim. Now the victim has begun to trust you better, and they will probably want to talk more to you than they will their family or the police. When dealing with a rape victim, all the trust in the world won't do the victim any good if you aren't around to talk when they really need someone to talk to. Not being there for a rape victim when they need someone to talk to can tarnish the trust the person has put into you. You do not have to baby-sit the victim; however, it is recommended that you at least leave your phone number or other contact information with the victim so that they can get in touch with you when they need to talk.

4. Encourage the victim to go to the police if they haven't done so. Finally, remember if it is hard to get the victim to talk about what they have experienced, chances are, they haven't gone to the police yet. Your job as the outcry witness is to encourage them (not make or force them) to go to the police. This encouragement is crucial because if the victim waits too long, any evidence of rape may be long gone and if there ever is a case brought forth, it will be the victim's word against the perpetrator's. The most important thing to remember here is never go to the police on behalf of the victim.

Tips & Warnings

• Rapes occur every day in this country and the most important thing to a victim (most of the time) is a shoulder to cry on.

Resources

• Rape Help