National Sexual Assault Hotline

National Sexual Assault Hotline
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At any given moment, more than 1,100 trained volunteers are on duty and available to help victims at RAINN-affiliated crisis centers across the country.


How does the National Sexual Assault Hotline work?
The concept behind the hotline is simple. When a caller dials 1.800.656.HOPE, a computer notes the area code and first three digits of the caller's phone number. The call is then instantaneously connected to the nearest RAINN member center. If all counselors at that center are busy, the call is sent to the next closest center. The caller's phone number is not retained, so the call is anonymous and confidential unless the caller chooses to share personally-identifying information.


Why was the hotline set up this way?
When RAINN was founded, we surveyed the directors of dozens of rape crisis centers and state and national anti-sexual assault organizations as well as many victims of sexual assault. The advice was unanimous: The best support services for rape, sexual assault and incest victims are those offered at community rape treatment centers.

Each local center is the best resource for victims in its community, not only for counseling but also for information about community resources and emergency protocols. In addition, because rape and sexual assault laws vary by state, local centers are in the best position to advise survivors on the legal aspects of the crime.

RAINN found that while local centers were well equipped to handle the counseling, the lack of a national hotline meant that the issue did not receive as much attention as it should. As a result, RAINN developed a unique national hotline system -- one that combines all the advantages of a national organization with all the abilities and experience of local programs. It was the country's first decentralized national hotline, and has since been emulated by many other organizations.

Thanks to private sector collaboration, RAINN and rape crisis centers have been able to work together to raise awareness of local services and help rape, sexual assault and incest survivors receive the best possible care.


Are hotline calls completely confidential?
RAINN does not have any record of a caller's phone number or name. Callers always have the choice of whether or not to share their real name or phone number with counselors; they are never obligated to reveal this information. In other words, we will know who you are only if you choose to tell us.

If a caller is under age 18 and chooses to share personally-identifying information with the counselor, most states require the counselor to notify authorities of the sexual assault of a minor. Only in this situation -- when a minor calls and chooses to reveal identifying information -- does the pledge of confidentiality not apply.

While almost all callers are connected directly to a counselor, a handful of our local affiliates use an answering service after regular business hours. In these cases, callers may choose to leave a phone number with the answering service, in which case the number will be confidential and will be given directly to a counselor to call back. Or, callers may choose to call back during business hours, when they will be connected directly.


How can I volunteer with the hotline?
Hotline volunteers are all associated with a rape crisis center in their area. Search our counseling centers database to find a center in your area. Once you've located your local center, contact their business office or visit their website to get more information about volunteering at that center.

How can my center become a part of the National Sexual Assault Hotline?
To learn how your local rape crisis center can become an affiliate of the National Sexual Assault Hotline, visit our Rape Crisis Center Information page or email [Only admins are allowed to see this link].


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Who are the Victims?
Breakdown by Gender and Age
Women

1 out of every 6 American women have been the victims of an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime (14.8% completed rape; 2.8% attempted rape).1

17.7 million American women have been victims of attempted or completed rape.1

9 of every 10 rape victims were female in 2003.2

While about 80% of all victims are white, minorities are somewhat more likely to be attacked.




Lifetime rate of rape /attempted rape for women by race:1
•All women: 17.6%
•White women: 17.7%
•Black women: 18.8%
•Asian Pacific Islander women: 6.8%
•American Indian/Alaskan women: 34.1%
•Mixed race women: 24.4%

Men
About 3% of American men — or 1 in 33 — have experienced an attempted or completed rape in their lifetime.1

•In 2003, 1 in every ten rape victims were male.2
•2.78 million men in the U.S. have been victims of sexual assault or rape.1
Children
15% of sexual assault and rape victims are under age 12.3

•29% are age 12-17.
•44% are under age 18.3
•80% are under age 30.3
•12-34 are the highest risk years.
•Girls ages 16-19 are 4 times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault.
7% of girls in grades 5-8 and 12% of girls in grades 9-12 said they had been sexually abused.4

•3% of boys grades 5-8 and 5% of boys in grades 9-12 said they had been sexually abused.
In 1995, local child protection service agencies identified 126,000 children who were victims of either substantiated or indicated sexual abuse.5

•Of these, 75% were girls.
•Nearly 30% of child victims were between the age of 4 and 7.
93% of juvenile sexual assault victims know their attacker.6

•34.2% of attackers were family members.
•58.7% were acquaintances.
•Only 7% of the perpetrators were strangers to the victim.



Effects of Rape
Victims of sexual assault are:7
3 times more likely to suffer from depression.

6 times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

13 times more likely to abuse alcohol.

26 times more likely to abuse drugs.

4 times more likely to contemplate suicide.




Pregnancies Resulting from Rape
In 2004-2005, 64,080 women were raped.8 According to medical reports, the incidence of pregnancy for one-time unprotected sexual intercourse is 5%. By applying the pregnancy rate to 64,080 women, RAINN estimates that there were 3,204 pregnancies as a result of rape during that period.


This calculation does not account for the following factors which could lower the actual number of pregnancies:
•Rape, as defined by the NCVS, is forced sexual intercourse. Forced sexual intercourse means vaginal, oral, or anal penetration by offender(s). This category includes incidents where the penetration is from a foreign object such as a bottle. Certain types of rape under this definition cannot cause pregnancy.
•Some victims of rape may be utilizing birth control methods, such as the pill, which will prevent pregnancy.
•Some rapists may wear condoms in an effort to avoid DNA detection.
•Vicims of rape may not be able to become pregnant for medical or age-related reasons.
This calculation does not account for the following factors which could raise the actual number of pregnancies:
•Medical estimates of a 5% pregnancy rate are for one-time, unprotected sexual intercourse. Some victimizations may include multiple incidents of intercourse.
•Because of methodology, NCVS does not measure the victimization of Americans age 12 or younger. Rapes of these young people could results in pregnancies not accounted for in RAINN's estimates.

Types of Sexual Assault

Unfortunately, sexual assault can come in many forms. In order to better understand the wide range of personal violences that can occur, we have included definitions of different types of rape and sexual assault, as well as other kinds of violence that often arise hand-in-hand with sexual assault. Click on the title below to read more about each type of sexual assault.



Was I Raped?.How can you figure out if what happened was rape? There are a few questions to consider.

Sexual Assault.Be aware: Some states use this term interchangeably with rape. For a precise legal definition, check the laws in your state.

Rape.Rape victims may be forced through threats or physical means. In about 8 out of 10 rapes, no weapon is used other than physical force. Anyone may be a victim of rape: women, men or children, straight or gay.

Acquaintance Rape .Acquaintance assault involves coercive sexual activities that occur against a person's will by means of force, violence, duress, or fear of bodily injury. These sexual activities are imposed upon them by someone they know.

Child Sexual Abuse.Sexual assault of children often includes incest as a subset of this form of sexual assault. While there is a substantial amount of overlap in the two types of assault, for the purposes of this website we have separated them in recognition of the different needs that victims of each type of assault may have.

Child Abuse.Child abuse takes place when a child is harmed by someone else physically, psychologically, or by acts of neglect.

Dating and Domestic Violence .Dating and domestic violence occurs in all socio-economic, educational, racial, and age groups. The issues of power and control are at the heart of family violence.

Drug Facilitated Sexual Assault .Drug facilitated sexual assault is the type of sexual assault in which drugs or alcohol are used to compromise an individual's ability to consent to sexual activity.
Hate Crimes .A hate crime is the victimization of an individual based on that individual's race, religion, national origin, ethnic identification, gender, or sexual orientation.

Incest.Incest is the type of sexual contact that occurs between persons who are so closely related that their marriage is illegal (e.g., parents and children, uncles/aunts and nieces/nephews, etc.).

Male Sexual Assault .Male victims of sexual assault are an often forgotten population--unseen, neglected, and underserved. The following information has been put together so that this population of victims can be better understood and supported.

Partner Rape .Partner rape includes sexual acts committed without a person's consent and/or against a person's will when the perpetrator is the individual's current partner (married or not), previous partner, or co-habitator.

Sexual Exploitation by Helping Professionals .Sexual exploitation by helping professionals involves sexual contact of any kind between a helping professional — doctor, therapist, teacher, priest, professor, police officer, lawyer, etc. — and a client/patient.

Sexual Harassment .Sexual harassment includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that affects an individual's work or school performance.

Stalking.Coming soon...

Stranger Rape .3 major categories include :Blitz Sexual Assault, Contact Sexual Assault, and Home Invasion Sexual Assault.

The Offenders
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The Rapist isn't a Masked Stranger
Approximately 2/3 of rapes were committed by someone known to the victim.1
73% of sexual assaults were perpetrated by a non-stranger.1
38% of rapists are a friend or acquaintance.1
28% are an intimate.1
7% are a relative.1


He's not Hiding in the Bushes
More than 50% of all rape/sexual assault incidents were reported by victims to have occured within 1 mile of their home or at their home.2

•4 in 10 take place at the victim's home.
•2 in 10 take place at the home of a friend, neighbor, or relative.
•1 in 12 take place in a parking garage.
43% of rapes occur between 6:00pm and midnight.2

•24% occur between midnight and 6:00am.
•The other 33% take place between 6:00am and 6:00pm.
The Criminal
•The average age of a rapist is 31 years old.2
•52% are white.2
•22% of imprisoned rapists report that they are married.2
•Juveniles accounted for 16% of forcible rape arrestees in 1995 and 17% of those arrested for other sex offenses.2
•In 1 in 3 sexual assaults, the perpetrator was intoxicated — 30% with alcohol, 4% with drugs.3
•In 2001, 11% of rapes involved the use of a weapon — 3% used a gun, 6% used a knife, and 2 % used another form of weapon.2
•84% of victims reported the use of physical force only.2
Rapists are more likely to be a serial criminal than a serial rapist.
46% of rapists who were released from prison were re-arrested within 3 years of their release for another crime.4

•18.6% for a violent offense.
•14.8% for a property offense.
•11.2% for a drug offense.
•20.5% for a public-order offense.