About 300 more people reported they were raped last year in New York City than the previous year, a sharp increase that officials theorize was prompted in part by the #MeToo movement, the New York Times reports. While other violent crimes like murder and assault decreased or remained relatively flat, reported rapes increased 22.4 percent to 1,795 in 2018, up from 1,467 from 2017. A broader category of sex crimes that includes groping and forcible touching jumped 8.4 percent to 3,873 in 2018, from 3,573 in 2017. Reported rapes have risen for 16 consecutive months since last fall, when allegations of sexual misconduct against movie producer Harvey Weinstein ignited a global reckoning about sexual harassment and assault, especially in the workplace.
Maureen Curtis of Safe Horizon, a nonprofit that places crime victim advocates at the city’s police precincts and handles local calls from the national rape crisis hotline, said the environment has made victims feel more comfortable discussing assaults. “They’re feeling more believed,” she said. “There’s more compassion and there’s less blaming around the person who has been victimized.” In the annual crime victimization survey released last month, the Justice Department reported that 40 percent of those who said they were sexually assaulted in 2017 said they reported the attacks to the police, up from 23 percent in 2016. Mayor Bill de Blasio said the numbers appear to reflect a cultural shift in attitudes about sex crimes. “Historic underreporting,” he said, “is finally being addressed.” He added, “I think the #MeToo movement is a part of it, and a number of other things. Messages are being sent by government. Messages are being sent by media, by advocates, helping victims — survivors — to know that they should come forward, that it’s important, that they’ll be protected, they’ll be supported.” The increase in reported rapes was driven largely by people coming forward about attacks involving domestic partners and acquaintances rather than strangers.