For the fourth edition of its education barometer, Apprentis d’Auteuil examined the emotional, relational and sexual lives of young people aged 16 to 20. Through OpinionWay, the foundation interviewed 2,148 young people of this age group, in France. The conclusions are chilling: more than a third of young people (37%) have suffered at least one type of sexual or gender-based violence from their peers. Whether it’s sexism, sexual assault, rape, sexual harassment, discrimination based on sexual orientation, or distributing intimate photos without consent.
More than one in two girls is affected
It is no coincidence that gender differences emerge from the survey: 55% of girls declare having suffered violence against 20% of boys. This figure rises to 65% for lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) youth.
19% of young people also report having experienced rape or other sexual violence at the hands of other young people. Nevertheless, 57% of victims didn’t tell anyone or didn’t feel supported after breaking their silence.
Sex education is overdue
As the survey highlights, since 2001 the law has provided for 36 sessions of education on emotional, relational and sexual life (EARS) in total for each student from CP to final year. However, according to the barometer, young people aged 16 to 20 attended on average only 3.2 sessions.
In detail, this implies that 46% of young people did not follow emotional, relational and sexual education courses in high school, and 82% in elementary school.
As a direct consequence of this deficiency, the notion of consent is poorly understood. 44% young people have already done it they agreed to a sexual relationship to please their partner, even if they didn’t want to. AND 30% of those interviewed believe this “ if you start a sexual act you have to see it through to the end”especially boys (40%). 27% even young people consider it boys’ sexual desire is uncontrollable AND 25% think about it girls may enjoy being forced to have sex.
Furthermore, if the majority of young people interviewed believe that a romantic relationship is fulfilling when it leans loyalty (89%) AND trust (71%), 56% they find it normal to have their partner’s phone codes, without his permission.
Apprentis d’Auteuil therefore calls for strengthening education on these issues to prevent sexual and gender-based violence.
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Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
