Artist Jaz Palmer stood in front of a collection of local art in Lakewood to start Sexual Assault Awareness Month.

When Palmer was 16, she told her mother that she had been assaulted by a family member. Her mother did not believe her.

“That was a really, really difficult experience,” Palmer said. “It is so crucial to get the message out that believing is not just the first step. It is the most important step.”

The gallery behind her was filled with various forms of physical art demonstrating an array of emotions surrounding victims’ journeys.

The Denver Police Department, Denver District Attorney’s Office, other organizations and sexual assault survivors met at the 40 West Gallery in Lakewood on Wednesday morning to highlight the importance of the international “Start by Believing” Day.

Officials from the Blue Bench, a sexual assault prevention and support center, and the Rose Andom Center, a domestic abuse treatment center, were also in attendance.

The city departments joined the national campaign 12 years ago to “stand in front of our community, the public and promise to start by believing patients when they come in and tell us they were sexually assaulted,” said Michelle Metz, the forensic nurse program manager at Denver Health.

The day — held on the first Wednesday of April — kicks off Sexual Assault Awareness Month, another campaign to shine a light on sexual violence, prevention and the need to shift cultural norms around believing victims.

While research shows that one in two women and one in three men will experience some sort of sexual assault in their lifetimes, statistics from the National Crime Victimization Survey and the U.S. Department of Justice estimate that up to 80% of alleged sexual assaults go unreported.

Furthermore, recent reporting from The Denver Gazette found that while reports are rare, arrests are even rarer.

Data analysis found stark differences in the rates of arrests among jurisdictions. For example, in Denver County there were 705 reports of rapes in 2024, compared to 133 arrests, including reports of rapes from a prior year but the arrest happened in 2024. That translates to roughly only one arrest for every six reports.

“Start by Believing Day is an opportunity for all of us to recommit ourselves to believing the victims, the survivors of sexual violence,” District Attorney John Walsh said, adding that all of the statistics are stark.

“In all too few cases are we able to pursue the cases and successfully obtain a conviction,” he said. “But we can’t do that if we don’t start by believing.”

Part of the awareness month includes the RISE Survivor Art show at the 40 West Gallery. The free show will run from April 3-25 and includes 50 art pieces created by sexual assault survivors.

“It is vitally important to allow art to express these darker emotions,” artist Taylor Carlton said. “Making art that reflects my story, I hope to connect to other survivors and express all of the nuanced layers of triumph, despair, healing and the lifelong impact that surviving sexual assault carries.”

Resources for survivors, provided by the Denver Police Department:

• Denvergov.org/StartbyBelieving
• The Blue Bench – Sexual Assault Hotline – 303-322-7273
• Denver Health Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners – 303-602-3007
• Denver Police Victim Assistance Unit – 720-913-6035
• Rose Andom Center – 720-337-4400

The Denver Gazette Investigative Reporter Jenny Deam contributed to this report.