Parkdale-High Park MPP Cheri DiNovo is lending her support to ‘Project 97’, a conversation about sexual assault, abuse and harassment.
Its name is derived from a statistic – that as many as 97 per cent of sexual assaults against women in Canada do not get recorded as crimes by police. Because of this statistic, Rogers Media is embarking on the year-long project to examine our country’s issues surrounding sexual violence.
In most cases, police don’t investigate because assault victims don’t come forward. The 97 per cent figure also indicates that even though some do report their assault, they change their minds and later withdraw their complaints. This is in part because some women find the thought of appearing in court or facing their aggressor daunting.
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As part of #Project97, DiNovo agreed to share her story of sexual assault with Macleans magazine. In the interview, she revealed she’s been assaulted twice, in her 20s and both times she didn’t report them to police. The minister-turned politician said she is not surprised that women don’t say anything because they are typically assaulted by a man whom they love, respect or are afraid of.
"The best solution, if there is such a thing, is for people to know that it’s not going to be quiet anymore," said DiNovo in a statement on the Project 97 website. "This is not going to be hush-hush."
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