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Public awareness efforts regularly reinforce that all partners need to get consent before sexual activity, but what does that really mean? Understanding consent is key to promoting healthy and respectful relationships, changing the culture around sexual violence, and ending sexual assault. This Sexual Assault Awareness Month, test your knowledge of what it means to ask for and give consent with this Joyful Heart quiz.

Olivia Christians is a member of the GenerationJOY committee at the Joyful Heart Foundation. She had the opportunity to tour the Sexual Assault Forensic Exam (SAFE) Clinic at the Nashville Sexual Assault Center and meet with its president, Rachel Freeman, and Vice President of Programs, Mary Beth Heaney-Garate.

When a person is sexually assaulted, they may choose to undergo a forensic examination to collect DNA evidence left behind in the assault. The evidence is preserved in a sexual assault evidence collection kit, often referred to as a rape kit.

As we kick off a new year and a new legislative session, Joyful Heart continues our work advocating for rape kit reform across the country. Ending the rape kit backlog is a tremendous goal, and we need advocates like you to help by supporting reform where you live.

Whether you are a novice advocate or a seasoned pro, you can make a difference. Here’s how to start advocating for rape kit reform in your community.

It can be difficult for any person experiencing sexual and domestic violence to seek support and find the resources they need. For some Latin@ survivors, cultural and language barriers can add to these challenges. One in three Latin@ women has experienced physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime. And 50% of survivors never report their abuse.

Editor’s note: A survivor’s decision to seek help or report a rape is a personal choice that belongs only to the survivor. Survivors’ bravery and credibility are not dependent on whether they choose to report an assault to authorities or not. All survivors are courageous; their reasons to share their experiences or keep it to themselves are their own. When a high-profile survivor story dominates news headlines, survivors’ accounts get called into question and are heavily scrutinized.

Beth Manos Brickey is a Certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, a yoga instructor, and a blogger with a love for food and wellness. She was chosen as one of four bloggers to compete in the Canyon Bakehouse Sammie Smackdown, a challenge to create the tastiest gluten-free sandwich. Canyon Bakehouse will donate $10,000 to the winning blogger’s charity of choice, and Beth is competing for Joyful Heart.

Lyzanne Malfitano has been a hotline shift supervisor at the Chicago Rape Crisis Hotline for five years. She is the LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning) staff trainer for the YWCA Metropolitan Chicago 40-Hour Sexual Assault Crisis Intervention Training. She is also a mental health counselor and provides counseling to women and LGBTQ adults at the Chicago Women’s Health Center, focusing on feminist-relational, trauma-informed counseling.

June is LGBTQ Pride Month, when lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning people and their allies celebrate diversity, progress, and pride. This month Joyful Heart reaffirms our support for survivors of all sexual orientations and gender identities or expressions.

Sexual and domestic violence can happen in all different relationships and to anyone, and respecting survivors’ diverse identities and experiences is essential. We support healing practices that recognize and affirm different aspects of survivors’ lives, including whether they identify as LGBTQ.