Sexual Assault Awareness Month

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Visit the campaign website: www.wasaam.org for campaign materials & events.

The theme for the 2012 campaign is Voice, Actions, Communities: Ending Sexual Violence

Over the last few years, the campaign has utilized the tagline or theme Be the Solution.  The SAAM committee did this with the intention of branding Be the Solutionfor Sexual Assault Awareness Month activities in Washington State.  This decision was based on the positive feedback we received from all of you the last few years regarding the good experiences you had with the simple, action oriented message, as well as the support you gave us in our efforts to brand the theme for future campaigns.  However, moving forward, instead of using Be the Solution as the theme, the campaign will begin to truly treat Be the Solution as a brand and still integrate a new and engaging main theme for the campaign each year.

The goal of the 2012 SAAM campaign is to continue the natural progression of SAAM in Washington that was started with Be the Solution. The previous years’ campaigns have provided basic awareness, helped people verbalize what positive things they do want, and gave people an opportunity to practice their new skills in their own lives. This year, we would like to shift the sense of ownership from individuals to communities, through hearing stories of awareness and action. Additionally, this year’s campaign will break silence around the myth that sexual violence does not happen in every community by highlighting real Washington voices!

Once again, the campaign calls for social change and encourages each program to engage their community in creative ways! Therefore, media was a big theme that came up with the SAAM committee about new ways to engage communities.

The digital materials that have been developed are centered on the concept of storytelling and the power that communities can harness through sharing their voices to create positive action. Two short videos were created, with a series of diverse Washington voices articulating how large of a problem sexual violence is, and also what they do to make a difference in their community. One video focuses heavily on the theme that sexual violence happens in communities across Washington and that change can start with each one of us. The other video expands on this message to include statements of real, attainable, bystander actions that community members are taking to help end sexual violence. You will be able to access and stream all of these videos from the SAAM website, subtitled in English, Spanish, and Russian. Additionally, a quick radio quality PSA has been recorded that echoes the messages conveyed in the two videos. The radio PSA will be available in English and Spanish.

The print materials developed also stay connected to the idea that media and storytelling are important in creating community change. Posters and handbills are available in English, Spanish, and Russian. Each of these can be used to promote the stories of Washingtonians being the solution because they contain a QR Code that internet equipped cell phones can scan and will take them right to the videos and additional resources!

Visit the WASAAM site to also access the materials:

• Campaign Toolkit

• Posters (12 x 18) in English, Spanish, and Russian

• Handbills (4 x 6) in English, Spanish, and Russian

• SAAM Awareness Video in English, Spanish, and Russian

• SAAM Bystander Video

• Radio PSA in English and Spanish