Teen Sexual Assault

According to RAINN, females aged sixteen to nineteen are four times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault. (Children and Teens) In today’s society, we commonly see headlines declaring “Teenager Sentenced to Jail for Rape of Classmate” or “Local High School Rape Details Emerge”. Throughout this research paper, I will be discussing how in our society, teen rape and sexual assault is becoming more and more prominent. I will also be exploring why teen rape and sexual assault cases are not being reported and how rape and sexual assault can affect a victim’s psychological, physical and emotional health.

I wanted to write about this topic because as a female teenager, these statistics scare

In mid-March of 2017, a high school freshman was “lured” to a residence by someone she knew, then about six males sexually assaulted the girl. During the entire affair, one of the males streamed it on Facebook Live. The video had as many as forty viewers, but not one viewer alerted the police. When the girl was found two days later, her family went to the police with the video. Because of the presence of social media in her attack, not only did this fifteen-year-old girl have a video of her being sexually assaulted online, but she had to deal with constant bullying on social media. (Lawson) One question that was going through my mind while I read about this, was why are people not speaking up about rape and sexual assault and reporting it? According to RAINN, three of the most popular reasons as to why rape and sexual assault cases are not reported are: one, the victim feared retaliation from the attacker; two, the victim or bystander believed that the police could not or would not do anything; and three, the bystander believed it was a personal matter for the victim to do themselves. (Criminal Justice

Some of the main effects on victims are depression, flashbacks and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These effects can make victims feel hopeless, and feel strong anxiety or fear, worried that they might see their attacker again or someone who resembles them. Other effects include self-harm, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), substance abuse, unwanted pregnancies and even thoughts of suicide. (Effects of Sexual Violence) Some of these effects can be even stronger for teens, considering the facts that 93% of teens who have been raped or sexually assaulted know their attacker, and over one third of the attackers are actually family members. People who have experienced sexual assault or rape as teens are more likely to be sexually abused again later in life, experience an eating disorder or have difficulty or fear of enjoying or engaging in sexual contact with a significant other.