In Pennsylvania, there is currently no minimum age to get married. A child of any age can get married if they meet certain requirements. For those under the age of 18, a custodial parent or guardian’s consent is all that is needed to marry. For anyone under the age of 16, permission to marry requires parental consent and for a judge to agree that it is in the applicant’s best interest. A new bill, House Bill 360/Senate Bill 81, would change this law. If it is approved an

Last week, we explored how the way that our society views Black girls as more mature and less innocent than their white peers may allow predators such as R. Kelly to exploit them. Research has shown that Black girls are viewed through a hypersexual lens — and as a result, are less likely to be believed when they report sexual assault. This begs the question: where exactly does this belief stem from, and how can we combat it? Like many issues involving race in our country, th

In 2018, we have seen substantial change when it comes to how allegations of sexual harassment and assault are handled. Unfortunately, far too many people continue to doubt victims, and may even openly blame and attack victims for their own abuse. While we have made considerable strides, there is much work to do — particularly when it comes to victim-blaming. One of the most pervasive myths surrounding sexual harassment and assault is that if a woman or girl is dressed a ce

​​There are many reasons why a victim of sexual assault may not report the crime to law enforcement, or ever even discuss it with family, friends or other loved ones. Embarrassment. Fear of reprisal. Believing the myth that rape victims are somehow responsible for the assault. Fear of the response from family or friends. Not wanting to get the assailant in trouble with the law. Fearing that the police would not do anything to help. Trying to convince themselves that this

June is Pride Month, a time to celebrate the Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ+) community. It is also an opportunity to explore the issues that face LGBTQ+ people in the United States, such as domestic violence and increased rates of hate crimes against transgender people. Today, we are exploring how sexual violence affects the LGBTQ+ community — and what we can do to help. The term sexual violence is used because it includes any type of unwanted sexual conta

In early February, Tarana Burke, the original founder of the #MeToo movement, spoke in Pittsburgh. Several members of Blackburn Center’s community were fortunate enough to be in attendance at this standing-room-only event, where Ms. Burke spoke about her life, her work, and how sexual violence impacts all women, but particularly women of color. In her talk, Ms. Burke made a statement that resonated with the audience. After speaking about a report on rape in Pittsburgh, she

For most Americans, the #MeToo movement started in the fall of 2017, with the bombshell New York Times story that Harvey Weinstein had been sexually harassing and assaulting employees and actresses for decades. On October 15, 2017, actress Alyssa Milano tweeted, “if you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet.” With that, the #MeToo movement took off, with Milano and actress Rose McGowan typically receiving the credit for it. Yet in re

We are at a critical moment in American history. Time Magazine just named “The Silence Breakers” as its person of the year for 2017, honoring all those who spoke out against sexual abusers. While we believe that no victim of sexual violence should ever feel compelled or pressured to talk about her or his experience in any way, we acknowledge that those who have chosen to do so, including Tarana Burke who started the #metoo movement more than a decade ago, have created an op

This fall, we have experienced what seems to be a turning point in our national conversation about sexual violence. Powerful men are being held responsible for sexual assaulting and harassing women, and for what feels like the first time, the majority of our society believes the female and male victims who come forward with stories of abuse. Yet one troubling aspect that has risen to the surface during this period of great progress is the number of women who will step forwar

The news has been full of stories recently of women and men alike coming forward to tell their stories of being sexual assaulted or harassed. Many of the perpetrators are famous or powerful men, while still others are unnamed or unknown abusers. We have reached a moment where there seems to be a possibility of real change, where men and women who sexually harass and assault others are being held accountable — and where the majority of our society is believing victims who co

Over the past several weeks, women and men alike have come forward to speak out against powerful men who have sexually abused and harassed them. From Senate candidate Roy Moore to comedian Louis C.K. to actors George Takei, Richard Dreyfuss and Gary Goddard to director Brett Ratner, an ever-growing number of men have been accused of misconduct, abuse and assault. It seems as though this is the beginning of a movement of truth and accountability. While some of the accused ha

In the wake of the revelation that Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has sexually harassed and assaulted women for decades, a social media trend soon emerged, prompted by actress Alyssa Milano: asking women to say “me too” if they have suffered sexual abuse or harassment. The idea took off, with hundreds of thousands — if not millions — of women sharing that they, too, had been sexually harassed or assaulted with the hashtag #metoo. Notably, this campaign was originally

Over the weekend, the New York Times published an exposé of Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, which ultimately led to him being fired from The Weinstein Company. The article detailed decades of Weinstein sexually harassing and assaulting young female actresses and employees, often utilizing the same patterns and types of behavior. Mr. Weinstein paid at least eight settlements to women for his sexual harassment and assault, and yet he was not fired from his company until

In recent weeks, two news stories have broken involving younger teachers sexually assaulting their students. These teachers were rightfully arrested and charged with assorted crimes for their offenses. Yet because of the facts of each case, the way that the media covered these crimes — and the way that the public has reacted to them — has been disturbing. The reason for this is that perpetrators in both cases were young female teachers, and the victims were teenage boys. T

Recently, the sexual assault trial against Bill Cosby ended in a mistrial, with the prosecutor vowing to seek a retrial. After a judge released the names of the jurors in the Cosby case, several spoke to the media about the case, giving anonymous accounts of the deliberations and their thoughts about the evidence. One juror’s views on the evidence in the case were particularly troubling — and show exactly what we mean when we say that we are living in a rape culture. Recall

This piece was originally published on Lancasteronline.com. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Following the announcement of a mistrial in Bill Cosby’s criminal trial, we’re reminded that while the criminal justice system is an important venue for survivors to seek justice and healing, it cannot be the only one — and it cannot become more effective in a vacuum. We all have a role to

On June 17, 2017, jurors in the Pennsylvania sexual assault trial of Bill Cosby reported that they were hopelessly deadlocked, and the judge declared a mistrial. The district attorney has already declared his intention to seek a retrial. At Blackburn Center, we stand behind all victims of sexual violence, and are heartened by the prosecutor's decision to seek justice for the women who were allegedly drugged and raped by Bill Cosby. Given the mistrial, we decided to rerun a p

Recently, the Associated Press ran a series on the phenomenon of "hazing" in youth sports that has largely been dismissed by coaches, administrators and officials as “inappropriate physical conduct” or even horseplay. Yet as the series points out, the “hazing” at issue wasn’t just a swat on the arm or roughhousing. In many instances, these so-called cases of “hazing” were full-on sexual assaults, with teammates anally raping fellow players. Let us be clear: these situations