Disproportionality & Sexual Violence: Who is Affected?

Although sexual violence affects every demographic and every community, when we talk about sexual assault and the experience of victims/survivors, we need to be aware that marginalized racial and ethnic communities, minority communities and underserved populations are often the most vulnerable to sexual assault.

Factors such as race, class, ethnicity, sexual orientation, immigration status and disability may make individuals more likely to experience to sexual assault and may mean that people will encounter additional barriers to gaining protection, receiving helpful resources and getting effective assistance following a sexual assault.

To be marginalized means to experience discrimination and exclusion because of unequal power relationships across economic, political, social and cultural dimensions. When a community is marginalized, they are pushed aside. It is there, at the fringe of society, that perpetrators of sexual violence often seek their victims — counting on societal blind spots to protect and perpetuate their transgressions.

Note on the statistics, all classifications represent the language used in the original research.

• Research shows that 33.5% of Multiracial women have been raped in their lifetime, as have 27% of American Indian and Alaska Native women, 22% of Black women, 19% of White women and 15% of Hispanic women.[1]
• For every 15 Black women that are raped, only one assault is reported.[2]
• In community studies of Black women, 34.1%-65% of reported childhood sexual abuse and 12% reported commercial sexual exploitation of children. In student samples, 11.2% of high school girls and 14.2% of college women reported rape. In national studies, approximately 1 in 5 Black women had been raped in their lifetime.[3]
• 40% of confirmed sex trafficking survivors in the United States are Black.[4]
• In a 2012 report titled “The Sexual Abuse to Prison Pipeline: The Girls’ Story,” researchers found an intrinsic link between the incarceration of young women of color and sexual assault. For example, in a study done in the Oregon justice system, 76% of the young women were survivors of sexual abuse by the age of 13. This same trend held in South Carolina, with over 81% of girls reporting a history of sexual violence.[5]
• According to King County statistics from 2011 to 2020 on charged Commercial Sexual Abuse of a Minor, Attempted Commercial Sexual Abuse of a Minor, Promoting the Commercial Sexual Abuse of a Minor, and Human Trafficking in the 2nd Degree cases, 43% of the victims were Black, 38% were White, 6% were Hispanic, 5% were Asian and 1% were Native.[6]
• Data from King County from 2013 to 2020 on defendants charged with Commercial Sexual Abuse of a Minor and Attempted Commercial Sexual Abuse of a Minor showed that 71% of sex buyers were White, 9% were Black, 9% were Asian, and 6% were Hispanic. 6
• Federal government studies have consistently shown that American Indian women experience much higher levels of sexual violence than other women in the United States. Data gathered by the U.S. Department of Justice indicates that Native American and Alaskan Native women are more than 2.5 times more likely to be raped or sexually assaulted than women in the United States in general (5 vs. 2 per 1,000).[7]
• Additionally, 34% or more than one in three Native women will be raped during their lifetime, whereas for women as a whole the risk is less than one in five.[8]
• A report from the Urban Indian Health Institute revealed that Seattle has the highest number of missing and murdered Indigenous women in the country (45), and Washington state holds the second highest number of missing and murdered Indigenous women (71).[9]
• People with intellectual disabilities are sexually assaulted at a rate seven times higher than those without disabilities.[10]
• A 2015 survey showed that 47% of transgender people are sexually assaulted at some point in their lifetime.[11]
• The same 2015 survey found that among transgender people of color, American Indian (65%), Multiracial (59%), Middle Eastern (58%) and Black (53%) respondents were most likely to have been sexually assaulted in their lifetime.11
• Approximately 1 in 8 lesbian women (13%) and nearly half of bisexual women (46%) have been raped in their lifetime.[12]
• Four in 10 gay men (40%) and nearly half of bisexual men (47%), have experienced sexual violence in their lifetime. 12

It’s very important for all of us to know and have relationships with community-based victim advocacy organizations, including any local culturally specific organizations or other organizations that focus on underserved or marginalized populations. To support efforts to increase access to safety for survivors from marginalized or underserved communities, here are some local and national resources:

National Latin@ Network

Black Women’s Blueprint

Immigration Advocates Network

LGBT National Help Center

National Black Justice Coalition

Black Transmen Inc.

National Organization of Sisters of Color Ending Sexual Assault

TransWomen of Color Collective

National Black Women’s Justice Institute

National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center

API Chaya, King County

Asian Counseling and Referral Service, King County

Refugee Women’s Alliance, King County

The NW Network, King County

Pathways to Healing, Cowlitz Indian Tribe, King County

Mother Nation, King County

Seattle Indian Health Board, King County

Consejo, King County

Lavender Rights Project, Serves King County

Abused Deaf Women’s Advocacy Services, King County

Organization for Prostitution Survivors, King County

Real Escape from the Sex Trade (REST), King County

To learn more about the intersection of sexual assault and marginalized communities, check out these resources:

Watch: Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, 2Spirit — Grassroots Organizing, Healing, and Recess from the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs

Read: Black Women and Sexual Violence from the National Organization of Women

Watch: Identifying and Responding to Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) from King County and the Children’s Justice Center of King County

[1] The White House Council on Women and Girls. (2014, January 21). Rape and Sexual Assault: A Renewed Call to Action. https://permanent.fdlp.gov/gpo45316/sexual-assault-report-1-21-14.pdf

[2]Hart, T., & Rennison, C. (2003, March). Reporting crime to the police, 1992–2000. https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/rcp00.pdf.

[3] West, C., & Johnson, K. (2013, March). Applied Research Sexual Violence in the Lives of African American Women. https://vawnet.org/sites/default/files/materials/files/2016-09/AR_SVAAWomenRevised.pdf

[4] Banks, Duren and Kyckelhahn, Tracey. (2011, April). Characteristics of Suspected Human Trafficking Incidents, 2008–2010. The Bureau of Justice Statistics; U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/cshti0810.pdf

[5] Saar, M. S., Epstein, R., Rosenthal, L., & Vafa, Y. (2012). The Sexual Abuse to Prison Pipeline: The Girls’ Story. Rights 4 Girls. Retrieved April 15, 2022, from https://rights4girls.org/wp-content/uploads/r4g/2015/02/2015_COP_sexual-abuse_layout_web-1.pdf

[6] Gauen, B. (2020). King County Commercial Sexual Exploitation Cases: The Data Behind the Charges. [PowerPoint slides]. Special Assault Unit, King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b71c32bec4eb7c684a77ff4/t/6104439472e43205ebb69ef3/1627669451950/FINAL+WEBSITE+2020+King+County+CSE+Data+7.30+Update+Final.pdf

[7] Perry, Steven W. American Indians and Crime- A BJS Statistical Profile 1992–2002. Bureau of Justice Statistics, US

Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs. December 2004. https://bjs.ojp.gov/library/publications/american-indians-and-crime-bjs-statistical-profile-1992-2002

[8] Tjaden, P. & Thonennes. (2000). The Prevalence, Incidence, and Consequences of Violence Against Women:

findings from the National Violence Survey Against Women. National Institute of Justice & the Centers for Disease

Control & Prevention. http://www.ncjrs.gov/txtfiles1/nij/183781.txt

[9] Lucchesi, Annita and Echo-Hawk, Abigail. (2018, November 14). Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls: A snapshot of data from 71 urban cities in the United States. Urban Indian

Health Institute, Seattle Indian Health Board. http://www.uihi.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Missing-and-Murdered-Indigenous-Women-and-Girls-Report.pdf

[10] Shapiro, J. (2018, January 8). The sexual assault epidemic no one talks about. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2018/01/08/570224090/the-sexual-assault-epidemic-no-one-talks-about

[11] James, Sandy E., Herman, Jody, Keisling, Mara, Mottet, Lisa, and Anafi, Ma’ayan. 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey (USTS). Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2019–05–22. https://doi.org/10.3886/ICPSR37229.v1

[12] The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2010). National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey: An Overview of 2010 Findings on Victimization by Sexual Orientation. https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/cdc_nisvs_victimization_final-a.pdf