Event Honors Survivors of Rape

LOS ANGELES — Nearly 18 million American women have been raped or have been victims of attempted rape during their lifetimes, a federally funded study has found.

In far too many of those cases, the women remain silent about their trauma, say organizers of a unique event today aimed at helping rape survivors overcome the silence and shame surrounding their assaults.

Called “You Are Not Alone: A Day Honoring Women Who Have Survived Rape and Those Who Have Given Them Voice,” the free event at the Los Angeles Central Public Library is scheduled for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

An organization of rape survivors called the Rainbow Sisters Project is sponsoring the event as “a day of music, poetry and inspirational stories of hope and recovery.”