Jenna Pearce, coordinator for the West Coast Community Resource Society’s (WCRS) Sexual Assault Response Program (SARP), hopes “more than anything” that survivors living in the Clayoquot region “feel seen and heard” when seeking new support services.
“I want them to feel safe,” she said. “And like they're not alone because they're not. There's so many people that are here for them and want to support them in whatever way that looks for them.”
Over the last year, WCRS has been rolling out SARP as a means to support sexual assault victims and provide consent-based education throughout the Clayoquot region. According to Laurie Hannah, executive director of WCRS, the organization services all of Clayoquot Sound, including Hesquiaht, Tla-o-qui-aht, Ahousaht, Toquaht and Yuułuʔiłʔatḥ communities, plus Tofino, and Ucluelet.
“The primary… role of the program is to provide emotional support and advocacy for people of all genders who are survivors of sexual assault,” said Pearce. “A big piece of that is just offering a space for people to come and talk and be heard, without judgment.”
Among other services, SARP provides accompaniment at the hospital, RCMP detachment and in court, as well as advocacy and information about medical and justice options.
“Having a worker go with them helps to educate them around what their options are,” said Hannah. “You don't always know all your options unless you have a worker.”
The organization recently trained a batch of 12 volunteer responders who, once protocol has been made with Island Health, will be available to accompany individuals to the hospital for a forensic exam. This was previously known as a “rape kit”.
According to Hannah, their SARP coordinator is currently available for accompaniment to the hospital while they await approval for their emergency volunteer responders.
“I am taking referrals; either self referrals, or from victim services from other agencies,” said Pearce. “I can [provide] survivors with emotional support, and information about their medical options, their reporting options. I can accompany them to the police station if they want to make a report and they'd like a support person with them, and I help them plan for their own safety, as well as help plan for healing.”
Another service available through WCRS’s SARP is Third Party reporting.
“This is an option for survivors to make a report to police anonymously through a designated third party,” said Pearce, noting that herself or another staff member at WCRS would be involved in this support.
According to Statistic Canada data from 2019, only 6 per cent of sexual assaults “came to the attention of police” and are 80 per cent less likely to be reported to law enforcement than other violent crimes.
“That's incredibly underwhelming; there's so many reasons for why survivors choose not to report that are perfectly valid,” said Pearce, adding that the organization is trying to give people more options and change what is available.
“It's an option for survivors to make a report [and] to share their story in a safe way,” said Pearce, noting that the victim can do so and remain an “arms length” distance away.
Pearce went on to explain that Third Party reporting can be useful for RCMP, giving them a more distinct vision of what is happening in the community.
“From there, hopefully, we can implement more practices and protocols to keep our people safe,” she said.
According to the Government of Canada, one in three women in the country experienced unwanted sexual attention or physical contact in public, while one in four have experienced “inappropriate sexual behavior” in their workplace.
Nearly five million women in Canada have been sexually assaulted since the age of 15.
According to Hannah, in 2022 the organization received funding from the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust to conduct preliminary research regarding information for sexual assaults in the region.
Based on their research and engagement throughout the communities, Hannah shared that it was found that sexual assaults are a concern in the region.
“Unfortunately, there is a big need for this program here, as there is in every area,” said Pearce.
Ellen Frood, executive director of the Sage Haven Society, referred to SARP as a “critical program” that is important to bring to rural and remote communities.
“The fact that West Coast [Community] Resource Society does have a program now is a testament to the need and to acknowledging that there's a need for somebody to be performing these services,” said Frood.
Sage Haven, a Port Alberni organization that offers transitional housing and support services to women and children, provides SARP services with similar support to that of the WCRS program. This includes emotional support, client advocacy, safety planning, information assistance, referrals to other supportive programs, among others.
“I think even just having this program, having this title, and these services available, it takes away that hiddenness and that secretness that perpetuates the feelings of isolation and shame among people who've been victims and those who are survivors of sexual assault,” Pearce told Ha-Shilth-Sa.
Hannah shared with Ha-Shilth-Sa that the team has been educating the community through workshops on consent culture.
“They've been going to resorts, and educating all the staff,” said Hannah. “[And] educating on the new definition of sexual assault, which is any form of unwanted sexual contact.”
“Every human deserves support, and everyone deserves to have access to support and know what their options are and what their rights are,” said Pearce.
“We, as a society, have a generational trauma around it, and we don't talk about it, we don't talk about it in families,” said Hannah. “In order to heal this we need to be able to discuss it and talk about it and to forgive each other.”
Jenna Pearce, SARP coordinator is responding to SARP calls from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. She can be reached through call or text at 250-726-5480, on Facebook messenger on Jenna wcrs, and at sarp@wccrs.ca. Victims of sexual assault can also reach out to WCRS’s 24-hour support line at 250-726-2020. The Sage Haven, in Port Alberni, can be reached at their 24-hour line at 250-724-2223.
