For a better experience, click the Compatibility Mode icon above to turn off Compatibility Mode, which is only for viewing older websites.

Sexual Assault Awareness Month Resources from the Drexel Libraries

April 2, 2024

This article contains information about sexual assault and/or violence which may be triggering to survivors.

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM), a month where individuals and communities are called upon to raise awareness for sexual violence and promote methods for prevention. During SAAM, we take the time to learn about how sexual violence impacts our communities and what we can do to help end sexual harassment, sexual violence, stalking, and abuse in those spaces. 


Drexel University and the Libraries proudly stands in solidarity with survivors and advocates by commemorating SAAM. Staff from Drexel’s Office for Institutional Equity and Inclusive Culture and the Drexel Libraries collaborated to create the following resource list, which includes just a few essential resources that foster dialogue and empower individuals and communities affected by sexual assault.

Letters From Survivors, Fiction, Support & Healing

  • Dear Sister: Letters from Survivors of Sexual Violence edited by Lisa Factora-Borchers: Artists, activists, mothers, writers and students share stories of survival, and what it means to them to be an advocate and ally to survivors.
  • Letters to Survivors: Words of Comfort for Women Recovering from Rape by Matt Atkinson: Women from around the world share their personal messages of hope after rape. Letters presented as works of full-color art, with the text of each letter.
  • Luis Ortega Survival Club by Sonora Reyes: Ariana Ruiz wants to be noticed. But as an autistic girl who never talks, she goes largely ignored by her peers despite her bold fashion choices. So when cute, popular Luis starts to pay attention to her, Ari finally feels seen. 
  • Missoula: Rape and the Justice System in a College Town by Jon Krakauer: A stark, powerful, meticulously reported narrative about a series of sexual assaults at the University of Montana ­- stories that illuminate the human drama behind the national plague of campus rape. 
  • Not That Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture by Roxane Gay: In this valuable and timely anthology, cultural critic and bestselling author Roxane Gay collects original and previously published pieces that address what it means to live in a world where women have to measure the harassment, violence and aggression they face, and where sexual-abuse survivors are 'routinely second-guessed, blown off, discredited, denigrated, besmirched, belittled, patronized, mocked, shamed, gaslit, insulted, bullied' for speaking out.  
  • Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson: A traumatic event near the end of the summer has a devastating effect on Melinda's freshman year in high school. 
  • Surviving the Silence: Black Women’s Stories of Rape by Charlotte Pierce-Baker Charlotte Pierce-Baker tells the harrowing and courageous account of her own rape and includes the stories of her family's response, and the voices of black men who have supported rape survivors.
  • Queering Sexual Violence: Radical Voices from Within the Anti-Violence Movement by Jennifer Patterson: Moving beyond dominant narratives and the traditional “violence against women” framework, the book is a multi-gendered, multiracial and multi-layered look at the role queer, transgender and gender non-conforming survivors have in the anti-violence movement. 
  • We Believe You: Survivors of Campus Sexual Assault Speak Out by Annie E. Clark and Andrea L. Pino: "Me too. It happened to me too." More than one in five women and 5 percent of men are sexually assaulted while at college. Some survivors are coming forward; others are not. In We Believe You, students from every kind of college and university-large and small, public and private, highly selective and less so-share experiences of trauma, healing, and everyday activism, representing a diversity of races, economic and family backgrounds, gender identities, immigration statuses, interests, capacities, and loves.
  • Written on the Body: Letters from Trans and Non-Binary Survivors of Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence edited by Lexie Bean: An anthology of powerfully honest and intimate letters written by trans and non-binary survivors of sexual violence, offering support and guidance to fellow survivors with additional resources for allies and professionals.

Memoirs & Poetry

  • Home Body by Rupi Kaur. Rupi Kaur walks readers through a vast emotional landscape. A reflective and intimate journey visiting the past, the present, and the potential of the self to heal after sexual assault. Home Body is a collection of raw, honest conversations with oneself in the form of straight forward, minimalist poems that cut through feelings of numbness against the backdrop of our social climate — reminding readers to fill up on love, acceptance, community, family, and embrace growth.
  • I Want to Go Home: Reclaiming Power After Sexual Assault by Renee Marie Simpson.  A true story about a free-spirited twenty something young woman whose trust and self-worth was taken one night by her best friend’s boyfriend, through an unforgivable and traumatic act of sexual abuse. She chooses to sail back home to Australia from Europe... with no sailing experience. This book is raw, written with clarity, honesty and self-reflection. A gentle first step for anyone starting to come to grips with the damage of past trauma, who want to begin the process of understanding and open the door to reclaiming their power.
  • Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller. Chanel’s perpetrator was sentenced to just six months in county jail after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting her on Stanford’s campus. Chanel was known to the world as Emily Doe when she stunned millions with her victim impact statement that was posted on Buzzfeed, where it instantly went viral — viewed by eleven million people within four days, it was translated globally and read on the floor of Congress; it inspired changes in California law and the recall of the judge in the case. Her story illuminates a culture biased to protect perpetrators, indicts a criminal justice system designed to fail the most vulnerable, and, ultimately, shines with the courage required to move through suffering and live a beautiful life.
  • Lucky by Alice Sebold. Alice Sebold reveals how her life was irrevocably changed when, as an eighteen-year-old college freshman, she was raped and beaten inside a tunnel near her campus. In this same tunnel, a girl had been raped and dismembered. By comparison, Alice was told by police, she was lucky. Alice Sebold shines a light on the true experience of violent trauma, and her redemption turns out to be as hard-won as it is real contributing to her attacker’s capture and conviction.
  • Nobody's Victim: Fighting Psychos, Stalkers, Pervs, and Trolls by Carrie Goldberg. An eye-opening book about a hidden world most people don’t know exists where ruthless perpetrators lurk–one of stalking, blackmail, and sexual violence, online and off–and the incredible story of how one lawyer, determined to fight back, turned her own hell into a revolution. Carrie talks about real cases and how she turns her clients into warriors as she fights back with the law to sue the big tech companies and systems for enabling this behavior and the people hiding behind their computer.
  • Speaking Truth to Power: A Memoir by Anita Hill. Twenty-six years before the #metoo movement, Anita Hill sparked a national conversation about sexual harassment in the workplace.

Prevention & Advocacy

  • Asking for It: The Alarming Rise of Rape Culture--and What We Can Do about It, by Kate Harding: The first non-academic, single-author book since the 1990s to examine sexual assault as a social phenomenon: noted blogger and author Kate Harding's provocative, sharp-and yes, funny-book tackling rape culture, also offering some suggestions for moving toward a culture that fully respects and supports victims, while protecting the rights of the accused. 
  • Blurred Lines: Rethinking Sex, Power, and Consent on Campus, by Vanessa Grigoriadis: An authoritative, you-are-there account of the current state of sex on college campuses and its dramatic impact on gender issues throughout America.
  • Intersections of Identity and Sexual Violence on Campus: Centering Minoritized Students' Experiences by Jessica C. Harris and Chris Linder: While sexual violence has been present and prevalent on campus for decades, the work of recent college student activists has made it an issue of major societal and institutional concern. This book makes an important contribution to and provides a foundation for better contextualizing and understanding sexual violence. 
  • Sexual Assault Prevention on College Campuses by Matt J. Gray, Christina M. Hassija and Sarah E. Steinmetz: Sexual assault continues to be a problem on college campuses despite greater attention to reducing rates of assault and an increased presence in the public discourse. Programming has been historically directed toward women by providing them with information about how to keep themselves safe rather than confronting a climate conducive to sexual violence. This important volume illuminates the urgency of combating sexual violence on college campuses.
  • Sexual Violence on Campus: Overview, Issues and Actions edited by Michael P. Watts: In recent years, a number of high-profile incidents of sexual violence at institutions of higher education (IHEs) have heightened congressional and administration scrutiny of the policies and procedures that IHEs currently have in place to address campus sexual violence and how these policies and procedures can be improved.

Journals & Counseling Resources

Additional Resources & Support

Members of the Drexel community have access to many resources and support. If you need to make a report about sexual violence, or any form of sexual misconduct, or you know someone who may need support, use this confidential form, or talk with someone at the Office for Institutional Equity and Inclusive Culture.

 

You can also learn more about the confidential resources - on campus, in Philadelphia, and online - or get access to 24/7, confidential, and free medical and forensic resources at the Philadelphia Sexual Assault Response Center.