Bill Text: FL S2188 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-27 - Introduced -SJ 510 [S2188 Detail]

Download: Florida-2011-S2188-Introduced.html

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       Florida Senate - 2011                            (NP)    SR 2188
       
       
       
       By Senator Benacquisto
       
       
       
       
       27-04239-11                                           20112188__
    1                          Senate Resolution                        
    2         A resolution recognizing April 2011 as “Sexual Assault
    3         Awareness Month” in Florida.
    4  
    5         WHEREAS, sexual assault continues to be a major social
    6  crisis in society, with one in nine women in this state a
    7  survivor of sexual violence, and
    8         WHEREAS, sexual assault continues to affect many
    9  Floridians, either directly, as the survivor of sexual assault,
   10  or indirectly, as a family member, friend, neighbor, or coworker
   11  of a survivor, and
   12         WHEREAS, men and boys can be victims of sexual violence as
   13  children, teens, or adults and are often reluctant to report the
   14  crime of sexual assault, and
   15         WHEREAS, sexual assault has a devastating effect on
   16  survivors, affecting every aspect of their lives, increasing the
   17  risk of depression, suicide, homelessness, and substance abuse,
   18  and often leading to posttraumatic stress disorder, and
   19         WHEREAS, volunteers and service providers in 30 certified
   20  rape crisis centers work to provide a continuum of quality care
   21  to sexual assault survivors through 24-hour hotlines,
   22  counseling, support groups, advocacy, medical care, and
   23  education, and
   24         WHEREAS, the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence seeks
   25  to improve services for survivors of sexual assault and to
   26  prevent future sexual assault through public awareness and
   27  victim services, and
   28         WHEREAS, child sexual abuse survivor and educator Lauren
   29  Book founded the organization Lauren’s Kids, Inc., which, in
   30  conjunction with the Florida Council Against Sexual Violence,
   31  has organized “Walk In My Shoes,” a 1,000-mile walk from Key
   32  West to Tallahassee, which symbolizes the long and painful road
   33  to recovery for survivors of sexual assault, and
   34         WHEREAS, “Walk In My Shoes” is promoting awareness,
   35  guidance, and support for survivors, educating adults and
   36  children about sexual assault, promoting the message that it is
   37  acceptable for survivors to tell others about the abuse they
   38  have experienced, and offering hope for healing for all
   39  survivors of sexual assault, and
   40         WHEREAS, the Florida Senate recognizes the vital importance
   41  of designating a time devoted to increasing public awareness and
   42  support of agencies providing services to sexual assault
   43  survivors, and envisions a future in which all communities are
   44  free of sexual violence, NOW, THEREFORE,
   45  
   46  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
   47  
   48         That April 2011 is recognized as “Sexual Assault Awareness
   49  Month” in Florida.
   50         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution, with
   51  the Seal of the Senate affixed, be presented to the Florida
   52  Council Against Sexual Violence and Lauren’s Kids, Inc., as a
   53  tangible token of the sentiments of the Florida Senate.