As a sexual assault survivor in Massachusetts, I had to fight to keep my untested rape kit from being destroyed. In some states, if survivors can’t afford a rape kit, they can’t have a rape kit. In others, survivors don’t have access to their police reports nor are they informed if or when their untested rape kits will be destroyed.
This is because there is no single comprehensive bill of survivors’ rights for the more than 25 million sexual assault survivors in the United States. This means that justice is based on geography because survivors’ rights vary from state to state. As a nation, I know we can do better than this.
Faced with the denial of my own rights, I had two choices: to accept injustice or rewrite the law. I chose to rewrite the law. While I know firsthand the failings of our system, I have hope in the power of change. This is why I worked with lawmakers to create a Survivor Bill of Rights, a bill that will provide sexual assault survivors’ with comprehensive rights nationwide.
Join me in asking Congress to support and pass common sense sexual assault survivor rights.
This hasn’t been an easy journey, but the stories I have heard inspire me to keep going. On my way to attend a meeting in the U.S. Senate about the need for sexual assault survivor rights, my cab driver asked me why I was going to the Capitol. When I told him, he started crying, and told me that his daughter is a rape survivor and how hard it was for her to work with the justice system.
The passage of a survivors’ rights bill will have an immediate and profound effect, giving survivors the legal protections and civil rights they sorely need. It represents not only justice for me and millions of sexual assault survivors, but also a restorative belief in our democracy. And Congress can make this change happen – there is bipartisan support for this bill, which means there is a very strong chance it will pass.
Rape is a complex problem and so sometimes, people don’t know how they can help. But by signing this petition you can be part of a nationwide movement to help support survivors.
Thank you,
Amanda Nguyen
As a sexual assault survivor, I did not have basic rights available to me – like knowing when my untested rape kit would be destroyed. Join me in asking Congress to pass a comprehensive bill of rights for all survivors.
