According to a sexual assault lawyer Toronto, the root cause of sexual harassment and assault is gender inequality. The two are the most common types of gender-based violence. The scope of sexual assaults can be determined from surveys carried out from police-reported data as well as self-reported data.

How much do you know about sexual assault and harassment? Have you been sexually abused or harassed. According to sexual assault lawyer Toronto at Ernst Ashurov, anyone can fall a victim of sexual harassment and assault. When this happens, you should be able to know what to do immediately and the steps to take to report the case to the authority. Below are some of the frequently asked questions about sexual assault and harassment:

• Is Sexual Assault Very Common?

 Statistics show that women self-reported cases of assault are up to 553000 every year in Canada while the police reported cases show that women are more victims of sexual assault compared to men. Though sexual assault and harassment have remained stable throughout the years, physical and robbery assaults have gone down with men being more victims of these crimes.

• Are Most Sexual Assaults Not Very Minor?

Sexual assaults are subdivided in to three subcategories; those which don’t bring any physical injury, those which bring physical harm and those which threaten the survivor’s life. Most assaults don’t bring any injury but all sexual assaults have a long-term effect on the psychological well-being of the survivor. Most women who are victims suffer depression, sleep problems, eating problems, anxiety disorders, suicidal behavior, and issues to do with substance abuse. According to a sexual lawyer Toronto, all these can have a significant impact on the general well-being of the victim, and for a considerably long time.

• Why Should Someone Sexually Harass or Assault A Woman?

Those who sexually assault women perceive them as unequal. This inequality creates a reason for humiliation, abuse, control, and intimidation. There is a false belief in our societies that men should control women even violently, which is very wrong and illegitimate.

• How Does Sexual Harassment Differ From Sexual Assault?

 According to a sexual assault lawyer Toronto, sexual harassment refers to any form of comment, joke, threat, or discriminatory remark about sex or someone’s gender. On the other hand, sexual assault is any sexual activity done unwillingly including touching and attacks.

• Why People Fail To Speak About Being Sexually Harassed Or Assaulted?

Freezing is a reaction that occurs due to fear and stress. It occurs during trauma like sexual harassment and assault where a person is not able to speak up. In most cases these assaults are done by a person close and well known to the survivor. The shock brought about by such unexpected danger can paralyze the one assaulted.

• Is It Possible To Stop Sexual Assault?

The best way of controlling sexual assault is by creating awareness through all means on the importance of stopping it. High school programs on violence prevention are highly effective.