In many cases of sexual assault, the offender is a man the woman is dating. This is commonly called date rape. In other cases, the offender is someone the woman knows, perhaps a co-worker, an employer, a neighbour or a friend. This is known as acquaintance rape. Although date and acquaintance rape is no less a crime than rape by a stranger, it tends to be ignored or denied by people because the offender is known to the victim.
Date rape has the lowest reporting rate of all forms of sexual assault.
The majority of date and acquaintance rape victims are young women aged 16 to 24. Education Wife Assault, 1987. The Ms. Report on Recognizing, Fighting and Surviving Date and Acquaintance Rape. Ms. Magazine, Sarah Lazin Books, 1988. This video depicts and occurrence of date rape and acts as a catalyst for a discussion of the issue surrounding sexual assault.