BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SCR 123|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SCR 123
Author: Jackson (D), et al.
Amended: 4/6/16
Vote: 21
SUBJECT: Sexual Assault Awareness Month: Denim Day
California
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This resolution designates the month of April 2016 as Sexual
Assault Awareness Month, and recognizes April 27, 2016, as Denim
Day California.
ANALYSIS: This resolution makes the following legislative
findings:
1)Women, children, and men are all victims of sexual assault,
and it is estimated that nearly one in two women and one in
five men experience sexual violence other than rape throughout
their lifetime.
2)In addition to the immediate physical and emotional costs,
sexual assault may also have severe and long-lasting
consequences of posttraumatic stress disorder, substance
abuse, major depression, homelessness, eating disorders, and
suicide.
3)A coalition of rape crisis centers and their allies, known as
the California Coalition Against Sexual Assault, has emerged
to directly confront this crisis with the cooperation of law
enforcement agencies, health care providers, institutions of
higher education, and other allied professionals from
SCR 123
Page 2
California's diverse communities.
4)It is our responsibility to support all rape survivors by
treating them with dignity, compassion, and respect. It is
important to recognize the strength, courage, and challenges
of the victims and survivors of sexual assault and their
families and friends as they struggle to cope with the reality
of sexual assault.
5)It is crucially important to hold perpetrators responsible for
sexual attacks, and to prevent sexual violence at every
opportunity.
6)In 1998, the Italian Supreme Court overturned the conviction
of a man who sexually assaulted an 18-year-old woman after the
court determined that, "because the victim wore very, very
tight jeans, she had to help him remove them, and by removing
the jeans it was no longer rape but consensual sex." Enraged
by the court decision, within a matter of hours, the women in
the Italian Parliament launched into immediate action and
protested by wearing jeans to work.
7)Nations and states throughout the world have followed the lead
of the Italian Parliament by designating their own "Denim Day"
to raise public awareness about rape and sexual assault.
This resolution:
1)Designates the month of April 2016 as Sexual Assault Awareness
Month.
2)Recognizes April 27, 2016, as Denim Day California and
encourages everyone to wear jeans on that day to help
communicate the message that there is no excuse for and never
an invitation to commit, rape.
Prior Legislation
SCR 43 (Galgiani, Resolution Chapter 57, Statutes of 2015)
designated the month of April 2015 as Sexual Assault Awareness
Month, and recognized April 29, 2015, as Denim Day California.
SCR 123
Page 3
SCR 22 (Evans, Resolution Chapter 55, Statutes of 2013)
designated the month of April 2013 as Sexual Assault Awareness
Month, and recognized April 24, 2013, as Denim Day California.
SCR 15 (Evans, Resolution Chapter 76, Statutes of 2011)
designated the month of April 2011 as Sexual Assault Awareness
Month, and recognized April 27, 2011, as Denim Day California.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified4/7/16)
by California Coalition Against Sexual Assault
OPPOSITION: (Verified4/7/16)
None received
Prepared by: Jonas Austin / SFA / (916) 651-1520
4/8/16 14:09:33
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