Frenemies? Policy Initiatives with Positive Benefits and Unintended Negative Consequences for Sexually Assaulted Women.

Abstract

The presentation examined the history, efficacy and use of the Publication Ban and the Victim Impact Statement to question common assumptions about who benefits from their application in sexual assault trials.

Co-presenters Jane Doe and Karen-Lee Miller drew on two qualitative studies to demonstrate the ways in which the Publication Ban and the Victim Impact Statement may be perceived as “frenemies” of victims/survivors. The term frenemy is defined in Wikipedia as a blend of the words ‘friend’ and ‘enemy.’ It refers to someone who pretends to be a friend but actually is an enemy, or someone who really is a friend but is also a rival and therefore potentially dangerous.

Keywords: victim impact statement; publication ban; sexual assault; Canada