WHEREAS, an estimated 90% of sexual assaults are not reported to police (Alberta Justice and
Solicitor General, 2013.); 30% of all women over 15 years of age report having experienced sexual
assault (Canadian Women’s Foundation, 2021); and Sexual Assault is the only violent crime in Canada
that is not decreasing with time (Statistics Canada, 2014); and
WHEREAS, newly formed resources are now available to the residents of the Village of Pemberton in
terms of health-care and community-based victim services; and that the Howe Sound Women’s
Centre Society (Est. 1981) has provided safe housing to families escaping violence in the Village of
Pemberton since 2006; and the Howe Sound Women’s Centre has been an important collaborator in
advocating for locally-based and on-demand continuum of care for sexual assault survivors, including
men and people who are gender-non-conforming); and
WHEREAS, it is reasonable to presume local rates of sexual assault are in keeping with nationally
measured trends, and that individuals who are identified to be at increased risk to be sexually
assaulted--namely newcomers to Canada, Indigenous people, young adults and youth, LBGTQ2SA+
identified people, as well as people with visible disabilities--are less likely to disclose sexual assault
due to associated social stigmatization; and
WHEREAS, Sexual Assault Awareness requires robust cross-sectoral collaboration to achieve
measurable amelioration of sexual violence in both our community and in the in the Sea to Sky region
as a whole; and
WHEREAS, it is noted April has been broadly declared Sexual Assault Awareness Month in both small
and large jurisdictions across North America;
NOW THEREFORE, I, Mike Richman, Mayor of the Village of Pemberton, do hereby proclaim April,
2023 “Sexual Assault Awareness Month” in the Village of Pemberton.