Presidential Documents

Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 65 / Tuesday, April 5, 2022 / Presidential Documents 19589 

Proclamation 10361 of March 31, 2022 

National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month, 

2022 

By the President of the United States of America 

A Proclamation 

I was raised to believe that one of the greatest sins is the abuse of power— 

whether it is economic, psychological, or physical. The cruel fact is that 

people of every age, ability, race, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, 

national origin, socioeconomic background, and religion suffer the pain and 

trauma of the abuse of power that is sexual assault. Sexual violence can 

occur anywhere—and millions of assaults occur each year at the workplace, 

in the home, at school, and online. These assaults are an intolerable affront 

to our shared humanity. During National Sexual Assault Awareness and 

Prevention Month, we renew our commitment to ensuring that every person 

can live a life free from sexual violence. We continue in our commitment 

to stand with survivors, hold perpetrators accountable, and dismantle a 

culture that is complicit in allowing sexual violence to continue. 

Sexual assault is also a public health crisis. According to the Centers for 

Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 1 in 5 women in America experiences 

a rape or attempted rape, and nearly 44 percent of women and about 25 

percent of all men experience some form of sexual violence in their lifetime. 

Tragically, many of those assaulted are young, and research shows that 

these assaults can have lifelong effects on health and are linked to chronic 

illnesses. Too often, this trauma is compounded by lost productivity, the 

challenge of seeking accountability, and the ensuing costs of medical and 

mental health care. 

My Administration is committed to supporting survivors and alleviating 

the public health crisis of sexual assault. That is why we included $450 

million in the American Rescue Plan to provide funding for domestic violence 

and sexual assault services, including rape crisis centers. We also included 

a historic commitment to funding culturally-specific community-based organizations to address the needs of survivors who face systemic barriers to 

accessing support and resources, including survivors of color, survivors with 

disabilities, and LGBTQI+ survivors. My Administration continues to fund 

innovative programs to support sexual assault survivors in rural and remote 

communities. 

I am committed to addressing sexual violence wherever it occurs. Last 

year, I issued an Executive Order directing the Department of Education 

to review Title IX regulations and other agency actions to ensure that all 

students have an educational environment that is free from discrimination 

on the basis of sex. Because 1 in 3 women under the age of 35 has experienced 

sexual harassment online, I have made addressing online forms of sexual 

violence, harassment, and abuse a priority, and my Administration recently 

launched a new Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online 

Harassment and Abuse. 

Sexual violence is also a matter of national security and military readiness. 

To advance the goal of eliminating sexual assault in our Armed Forces, 

I signed the 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, which includes the 

historic shift of legal decisions in cases of sexual assault from commanders 

to independent, specialized military prosecutors. To implement the I Am 


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19590 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 65 / Tuesday, April 5, 2022 / Presidential Documents 

Vanessa Guille ́n Act, I also issued an Executive Order to add sexual harassment as a specific offense under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. 

I was proud to support and sign into law the Ending Forced Arbitration 

of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021. This law advances 

efforts to prevent and address sexual harassment and sexual assault and 

promotes access to justice by guaranteeing that people who have experienced 

sexual assault and sexual harassment in the workplace are not forced into 

binding arbitration and are instead allowed to choose whether to go to 

court. 

Ending violence against women and eliminating sexual assault has been 

a priority for me throughout my life. It is why I wrote and championed 

the original Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), a law that has transformed how we respond to sexual assault and which I count as one of 

my proudest legislative accomplishments. I am proud to have recently signed 

into law the reauthorization of VAWA, which expands prevention efforts 

and protections for survivors of sexual assault and other forms of genderbased violence. The law will provide increased resources and training so 

that our law enforcement and our judicial systems are better able to appropriately handle these cases. It includes a new focus on addressing technologyfacilitated abuse and establishes a Federal civil cause of action for victims 

of non-consensual distribution of intimate images. The Act will strengthen 

rape prevention and education efforts, support rape crisis centers, improve 

the training of sexual assault forensic examiners, reduce the backlog of 

untested DNA kits, and broaden access to legal services for all survivors. 

It will also expand recognition of the special criminal jurisdiction of Tribal 

courts to cover non-Native perpetrators of sexual assault, sex trafficking, 

child abuse, and stalking. 

This month, we honor the bravery and leadership of survivors by rededicating 

ourselves to eliminating sexual violence. It will require care and commitment 

from each of us to realize an America where everyone is free from the 

threat and impact of sexual violence. 

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States 

of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution 

and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 2022 as National 

Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month. I urge all Americans to 

support sexual assault survivors including when survivors reach out and 

disclose abuse. 


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Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 65 / Tuesday, April 5, 2022 / Presidential Documents 19591 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day 

of March, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-two, and of the 

Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and fortysixth. 

[FR Doc. 2022–07275 

Filed 4–4–22; 8:45 am] 

Billing code 3395–F2–P 


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