Ten Things You Need To Know About Rape In The United States

By Palash Ghosh | January 08 2013 4:04 PM

The brutal gang-rape of a young medical student in India has attracted global attention to the epidemic of sexual assaults against women in that county. But rape is also a big problem in the U.S.

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The Pa. Liquor Control Board pulled a public awareness ad Wednesday following complaints from rape victims that the ad blames women. The ad campaign is meant to warn young adults about the dangers of heavy drinking and the link to date rape. Instead, critics saw the ad as an attack on women and an accusation that rape is the victim's faults.

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Here are some compelling facts about the incidence of rape in the U.S.:

One out of every three women in the U.S. will be sexually assaulted during her lifetime.*

Someone is sexually assaulted in the U.S every 2.5 minutes.*

Compared to other advanced countries, the incidence of rape in the United States is four times higher than in Germany, 13 times higher than in England and 20 times higher than in Japan.*

Fifteen percent of rape victims are below the age of 12.**

Four out of 10 sexual assaults take place at the victim's own home.*

Almost three-fourths (73 percent) of rape victims knew their assailant.*

More than half (54 percent) of female rape victims were under the age of 18 at the time of the first rape.*

More than three-fifths (61 percent) of all rapes go unreported.*

One in 10 rape victims are male.*

Sexual assault victims are six times more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder; 13 times more likely to abuse alcohol; 26 times more likely to abuse drugs; and four times more likely to contemplate suicide.*

*SOURCE: Crisis Intervention Center

**SOURCE: Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network