Sexual Assault

You mentioned that your boyfriend has sex with you when you don’t want to. When a person forces another person to have sex or perform other sexual acts without their consent, it may be considered sexual abuse or rape. Even if you are married or in a relationship with the person who is causing the abuse, generally, it is still considered abuse and may be a crime. Abuse in the context of intimate relationships is not something unusual: at least 7.7% of women suffer sexual abuse by an intimate partner (including spouses) throughout their lifetime.

Sexual abuse is a common form of domestic violence, and women often feel too embarrassed to talk about it. But please, know that you have the right to say “no”, even to your boyfriend, and that you also have the right to be heard. Although you should consider your safety when thinking about how you will handle this situation. If your boyfriend is forcing sexual contact that you do not want and that you have not consented to, he is sexually abusing you. Here is some more information about rape within relationships and resources for people going through this problem.

Although the specific legal definitions vary from state to state, in general, most states recognize sexual contact not desired and not consented to as sexual abuse and recognize forced sex as a crime. Our website has specific information about some of the laws relating to sexual abuse and rape in Florida. [CHANGE FOR STATE] This page also has information about a organizations in Florida helping victims of sexual abuse who want to report the crime to the police, and victims who prefer not to report it.