WE'RE ON A MISSION
The Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape is working to eliminate all forms of sexual violence and to advocate for the rights and needs of victims of sexual assault.
Women in U.S. Prisons
- Young: 75% are between the ages of 25 and 34.
- Low Income: 50% lived below the poverty line and were unemployed when arrested.
- Women of Color: African-American women are 8 times more likely to receive jail sentences than European-American women. In California, the state with the largest population of women in prison, 46% are African American and 30% are Latina.
- Mothers: 78% are mothers of dependent children.
- Non-Violent Offenders: 75% are incarcerated for non-violent offenses.
- Survivors of sexual or domestic abuse: Between 48% and 80% have suffered from sexual abuse or abusive intimate relationships.
- Victims of Substance Abuse: 90% have a history of drug and/or alcohol abuse. The main reason for the high increase in imprisonment of women is the "war on drugs."
- Mentally Ill: Many suffer mental illness due to insufficient mental health services, the massive incarceration of drug-addicted women, and the stresses of incarceration, including sexual abuse by guards.
