Editor’s note: No one is safe, a global project on sexual assault is an in-depth look at sexual assault and the trauma that survivors endure. It was published in five installments, each with six articles and had an Epilogue by a Youth Journalism International alum. The project features personal accounts from survivors, news reporting on the issue and commentary. Links to each of the 31 published articles in the project are below a brief introduction by Senior Correspondent Frida Zeinali.
Watch a recording our public forum about the project featuring 18 of the 21 students:
YJI students who reported ‘No one is safe’ share insights
In an increasingly unsafe world, sexual assault remains a dire issue. From unwelcome advances to rape, sexual assault describes a broad range of unwanted actions that are sexual and violent in nature and often criminalized.
Sexual assault affects the lives of millions of individuals annually as victims hail from every country and demographic background, and from all age and gender categories.
Anyone, anywhere, anytime could be victimized.
Media coverage often fails to address the issue in a global context, so readers may not realize the full extent of the problem.
In using the term “sexual assault,” No one is safe adopts the World Health Organization’s 2012 definition of sexual violence: “any sexual act, attempt to obtain a sexual act, unwanted sexual comments or advances, or acts to traffic, or otherwise directed, against a person’s sexuality using coercion, by any person regardless of their relationship to the victim, in any setting, including but not limited to home and work.”
In a project that brought 21 young reporters from 14 countries on five continents together, Youth Journalism International’s No one is safe shows the pervasiveness of this violence and the resulting trauma through in-depth news reporting, commentary and original artwork.
Each of the 31 pieces that make up No one is safe offers exclusive perspectives on a wide range of issues relevant to sexual assault on a global level. There are discussions on machismo and microaggressions and a story about the Istanbul Convention, an international human rights treaty aimed at preventing violence against women. There are critiques of how the media portrays the issue and interviews with experts concerning legal proceedings and social and psychological support.
The project also includes the painful accounts of 13 courageous survivors – including one of our own reporters – who agreed to share their experiences. We’re honored to be able to present their stories.
No one is safe is presented in five installments, with links to each individual piece below.
Frida Zeinali is a Senior Correspondent with Youth Journalism International. She wrote this introduction.