The Teenagers Handbook for Preventing Rape and Sexual Assault
Our young sons and daughters are our most valuable commodities. As they grow up, we teach them right from wrong but sometimes we assume they know about the predators out in the real world. Being a teenager today comes with a lot of pressures and dangers that we, as adults, never really had to face. We must arm our young adults with all the ammunition they need to make good and life challenging decisions. They must know, they need to know, what they will be facing, and they will face them. It is our duty as parents to give them the knowledge to make these decisions. Remember they will be out there alone when they must deal with these types of situations.
There have been a number of books, fold out pamphlets and supporting materials written on rape and sexual assault. I feel that a very important group of the population has been short changed and left out, the teenager. We don’t give them the credit for understanding what is happening in the real world or the information that will help them when faced with this type of situation.
Not only have I been in the Law Enforcement Field for over 30 years, but also I am a father of two daughters. (Being a parent is a very trying experience) For the last twelve years I have been working in a college campus setting, dealing with approximately 30,000 students on three campuses.
I have learned many lessons trying to reach young adults. First, unless a book is assigned to them to read they probably will not pick it up and read it. Second, if they do pick up something to read, they tend to lose interest in about 10 minutes. Third, most teenagers’ feel they know everything and their parents know nothing. Fourth, a tragic situation will never happen to them.
When I decided to write about sexual assaults I tried to keep these four lessons in mind. I wanted the information short, to the point and direct. I feel that teenagers deserve very straight, honest approaches to crime problems and the preventive measures they can take. Of course, not all techniques work 100% of the time, but some approaches work better than others. I have shared with my daughters this information but like most teenagers, they will listen to almost anyone but their parents. I hope someone reads this booklet and passes the information on to them. If they hear it from someone else it might make sense to them.
Both my daughters have finished college and graduated from the University of Michigan, and are into their chosen careers. I wrote this booklet specifically with the teenage group in mind. The teenager is the prime candidate to be at the wrong place at the wrong time and become a victim. If a teenager can pick up this booklet, read it in about ten minutes, and walk away with one or two important ideas, they will be more prepared for the encounters they will face.
Most sexual assault books are very confusing when it comes to the self-defense sections. I feel there are only three or four very simple moves that are easy to use and extremely effective. Almost every self-defense instructors feel they have the answers to self-protection, but they try to teach too much and tend to lose a young audience.
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Great article! Very helpful.
thankyou for this. it really helped me in an essay i am doing about rape and methods of prevention
