Module 11
How Accurate Language About Sexual Assault Supports Victims in the Criminal Justice System

Learning Objectives 

This module will enable victim advocates to:

  1. Understand how the language used to describe sexual violence shapes perceptions of the harm to victims and the culpability of offenders.
  2. Recognize and avoid using the language of consensual sex to describe sexual violence.
  3. Recognize and avoid using language that creates the “invisible perpetrator” and minimizes the violence.
  4. Recognize and avoid using victim-blaming language.
  5. Educate the media when they misuse language in articles about sexual violence.
  6. Educate colleagues and other criminal justice professionals about the importance of accurate language when talking and writing about sexual violence.