County Raises Awareness on Sexual Assaults

The Middlesex County Board of Freeholders is going all out to raise awareness about sexual violence.

The county governing body proclaimed April as “Sexual Assault Awareness Month” (SAAM) at its meeting on Thursday, April 4. They also plan to rename the county's Rape Crisis Intervention Center at the meeting to better reflect the efforts to ensure survivors receive the support they need and deserve.

The Middlesex County Office of Health Services’ Health Education Division, the Rape Crisis Intervention Center, and the Middlesex County Sexual Violence Prevention Coalition have come together with the support of the Board of Chosen Freeholders to join the efforts of national, state, and local partners to educate the community about what can be done to prevent sexual assault and how to support survivors.  

The Board also recognized the Middlesex County Academy for Allied Health and Biomedical Sciences for partnering with the County Health Services Office to pilot the “Gender, Race and Sexuality: How Media Shapes Our Culture” program for teenagers from ages 13 to 18.

The school program, put out by the Media Literacy Project, is a part of a statewide effort to develop and implement primary prevention programming that will effectively change societal attitudes and behaviors that support a culture of violence. 

To that end, the County and their partners have a slew of events this month in observance of “Sexual Assault Awareness Month":

• April 4 and 5: Two performances of the Vagina Monologues, sponsored by the Rutgers University Office for Violence Prevention and Victim Assistance, will be presented at the Livingston Campus Center, Livingston Hall, 84 Joyce Kilmer Ave. in Piscataway. Tickets are $5 for students and $7 for non-students.  Doors open at 8 p.m. Shows begin at 8:30 each evening.  For more information, contactvdayrutgerstvm@gmail.com.
• April 5 and every Friday throughout the month: Information about available services, awareness events and prevention efforts will be available in the Middlesex County Administration Building lobby, 75 Bayard Street, New Brunswick. 
• April 6: Middlesex County Confidential Sexual Violence Advocates and Sexual Violence Prevention Coalition Members will join people from throughout the state at the New Jersey Coalition Against Sexual Assault’s Third Annual SAAM 5K Walk/Run, to be held at Veteran’s Park, 2206 Kuser Road, Hamilton. Visit www.njcasa.org for more information.
• April 17: The Middlesex County Rape Crisis Intervention Center’s Clothesline Project, a testimonial display of survivor-created shirts displayed upon a clothesline to honor survivors, aid them in their healing through artistic expression and raise awareness, will be displayed at Middlesex County College in the Main Lounge at the College Center, 2600 Woodbridge Ave., Edison, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. 
• April 26: Middlesex County will recognize Denim Day by permitting County employees to wear denim to raise awareness of sexual violence. 

For more information about sexual violence, Middlesex County’s prevention efforts, available services or Sexual Assault Awareness Month events, call 1-877-665-7273.