SCCADVASA Launches Healthy Relationships Campaign Statewide to Recognize Sexual Assault Awareness Month

COLUMBIA, S.C., April 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — The South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (SCCADVASA) recognizes the eighteenth annual Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) with the launch of its Spring 2019 healthy relationships digital marketing campaign, REALationships101. REALationships101 speaks to young people across the state of South Carolina to increase knowledge and understanding of the characteristics of a healthy relationship. Learn more at http://www.realationships101.org.

SCCADVASA initially launched the REALationships101 campaign in the fall of 2018 and will extend the campaign with additional assets and a new “quiz” feature through July as part of the spring 2019 launch.

To extend reach and spread awareness of the campaign, SCCADVASA has also encouraged its 22 member organizations to share REALationships101 graphics, videos and campaign materials on April 23, 2019 as part of a statewide digital launch day. Eleven of these organizations will participate in the statewide launch on April 23, listed below.

Beyond Abuse (Greenwood)
CASA Family Systems (Orangeburg)
Foothills Alliance (Anderson)
Hopeful Horizons (Beaufort)
My Sister’s House, Inc. (Charleston)
Pee Dee Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (Florence)
People Against Rape (Charleston)
Pickens County Advocacy Center (Easley)
Safe Homes Rape Crisis Coalition (Spartanburg)
The Family Resource Center (Camden)
The Julie Valentine Center (Greenville)

REALationships101 speaks directly and honestly with young people via social media and online to reach them within the platforms where they spend so much of their time. The digital campaign presents simulated text conversations between two young people, educating teens and young adults about healthy relationships through an intentional, ongoing dialogue that includes topics like consent, respect, trust and the value of personal space.

The campaign also includes an online REALationships IQ quiz that highlights healthy aspects of relationships — aspects that are particularly helpful in a time when youth in our community are constantly inundated with instances of violence and toxic relationship practices behind the screens of their mobile devices.

Sexual Assault Awareness Month is organized by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center and recognized nationally. The goal of SAAM is to increase awareness about sexual violence and educate the public on a national level about how to prevent it. This year’s theme is “I Ask” — empowering the public to recognize consent and the importance of asking for permission and respecting boundaries.

To align with SAAM’s “I Ask” theme, SCCADVASA emphasizes the importance of practicing consent and honoring another person’s choice throughout the REALationships101 campaign.

SCCADVASA sees SAAM as an opportunity to educate our youth about how to become active in prevention, education and speaking out against harmful attitudes and behaviors through helping them distinguish what constitutes healthy and unhealthy relationship practices, both online and offline. It is vital to promote healthy relationships and empowerment practices to our youth in order to change our communities’ relationship with violence.

This campaign aligns with SCCADVASA’s mission to promote the prevention of domestic violence and sexual assault across the state of South Carolina and to ignite transformative social and cultural change in our communities. Explore the campaign at http://www.realationships101.org

To learn more about SCCADVASA’s REALationships101 campaign or donate to support its programs, visit http://www.sccadvasa.org. Follow SCCADVASA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @sccadvasa.

About SCCADVASA’s REALationships101 Campaign
The REALationships101 campaign educates teens and young adults about the characteristics of a healthy relationship. The campaign advocates for transformative social change through messages that promote consent, respect, trust and the value of personal space through a lens of inclusivity, empathy, and purposeful social action. To learn more about the REALationships101 campaign visit http://www.realationships101.org.

About The South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (SCCADVASA)
We work toward ending domestic and sexual violence in South Carolina and beyond through engaging individuals and communities in advocacy, collaboration and education. We advocate for the transformative social change that will result in a society free of violence, push for policy changes that support survivors, and provide education and technical assistance to build the capacity of our members, allied organizations and communities to provide trauma-informed and survivor-centered services. For more visit http://www.sccadvasa.org.

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SOURCE The South Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (SCCADVASA)