Did You Consent To The Sexual Act, Or Were You Coerced?

July 12, 2024

Did You Consent To The Sexual Act, Or Were You Coerced?

Were you selected as “special”, groomed, or placed alone and under the “care” of an important person in your life? Maybe a teacher, employer, official, church clergy, medical professional or parent figure?

Have you ever asked yourself one of these questions:

Were you left feeling unable to control the circumstances under which your body was used or sexually assaulted?
Did you feel cornered or trapped?
Were you unable to say no because of the power, authority and respect afforded to the perpetrator?

What Is Consent?

Consent is like making a deal with someone, but instead of signing a paper, you use your words and actions to agree on something. Similar to how you and a friend might agree on the rules of a game before you start playing, consent is about agreeing on what is okay and what is not okay with each other.

It is important to always check if everyone is okay with what is happening, just like you would read and understand a contract before signing it to make sure you agree with the terms. Consent is all about communication, respect and making sure everyone feels comfortable and safe.

Here is another word you should know: Coercion.

What Is Coercion?

Coercion is when someone tries to make you do something you don’t want to do by using force, threats, or tricking you. When someone tries to make you agree to something by making you feel scared, uncomfortable, or like you have no choice, that’s coercion.

For example, if someone is trying to convince you to do something you know is wrong for you and they say things like, “If you don’t do this, I won’t be your friend anymore, or ‘I’ll tell everyone your secret if you don’t do what I say’”, that is coercion.

For example, some people who were sexually assaulted report that they felt they had “no choice”, and that it was “expected” of them. They feared future opportunities, injury, harm to their health or body, or damage to their reputation or future. Worst of all, some victims even feared for their life if they did not “go along with it”.

Many people who have been sexually assaulted feel ashamed, guilty, and, somehow, they feel responsible for getting into that situation.

But it was not their fault.

Again, this was not the victim’s fault. And if you have been sexually assaulted, it was not your fault either.

Seek Justice

We want you to know you can and should speak up, that the acts performed on you were wrong and not what you wanted.

Our society has seen some powerful people take advantage of their influence. They have used their position and titles to exert their control. They create environments where they would have access to vulnerable victims without recourse, until now.

Now, some of the victims of influential people’s sexual appetites are taking action. They have decided to take back their power and acknowledge that they were victims of a predator.

You may already be familiar with criminal law and reporting to police. But have you heard of Civil law?

Civil justice requires the perpetrator to prove consent.

There are no time limitations to Civil lawsuits of this nature and this is where we can help you pursue justice.

Learn more: “Criminal vs. Civil: How to Seek Justice After Sexual Assault”

Perpetrators Can Be Anywhere

Predators often gain access to their victims via connections through various environments or organizations, including familiar settings like schools, churches, and workplaces, as well as public venues such as restaurants and bars.

Some predators meet their victims online, sometimes on dating sites.

Grooming is a process where someone slowly gains trust through small actions that might seem nice or fun to the victim – at first. This can take a long time as the perpetrator tries to build trust not only with the victim, sometimes their friends or family too, making them feel they can trust that person.

Predators might use people who trust them to get close to the victim. These people, who would usually help keep the victim safe if they knew the danger, are unknowingly helping the predator instead.

In some cases, the victim was provided with alcohol or other intoxicants by the perpetrator to reduce resistance.

Often the victim felt they had no choice and had to “go along with it” to avoid ridicule, harassment, injury or loss of future opportunities.

We Are Here To Help You

If you have been injured, sexually assaulted, overpowered by a person in a position of control and authority, or have had your body compromised, we can help you.

Call Jim Hanson today at Hanson Kohan Lawyers (604) 984-7555 or fill out the confidential form below. We can determine if we can help you pursue justice now.