The legal definition of consent differs from state to state. In general, consent is an active, verbal agreement to engage in sexual activity with someone. Sexual activity without your consent is rape or sexual assault. If you are underage, under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, or sleeping, you do not have the capacity to give consent. If someone pressures, tricks, or emotionally forces you to agree to sexual activity, this is considered sexual coercion.

Any sexual activity that you did not consent to is sexual assault. While the terms sexual assault and rape are sometimes used interchangeably, sexual assault also refers to non-penetrative sexual activity, including fondling, groping, forced kissing, and molestation.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission defines sexual harassment as; “Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes sexual harassment when submission to or rejection of this conduct explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.” Sexual harassment is illegal, but not always criminal. Generally, people define sexual harassment beyond the workplace, such as catcalling, and this behavior may or may not be illegal.

Sexual coercion means pressuring, tricking, threatening, or non-physically forcing someone into any sexual activity. This can also be in the form of requesting sexual activity in exchange for a professional or financial benefit. You do not owe anyone sex—not your investors, bosses, mentors, teachers, or anyone who does or does not have any power over you.

When someone penetrates your vagina, anus, and/or mouth with any body part or object, or oral penetration with their sex organ, without your consent, it is rape. Please know that consent to one sexual act does not imply consent to another sexual act. Rape can occur even if you consented to certain sexual acts. Legal definitions of rape vary by jurisdiction.

Within the criminal justice system, the term victim describes a person who has been subjected to a crime. The word also serves as a status that provides certain rights under the law, while not assuming guilt or assigning blame. Investigators and prosecutors use this term to illustrate that a crime has been committed against a person. Some individuals who have experienced sexual assault prefer to be called victims as it indicates they they could not control what happened. Other individuals prefer to be called survivors (see definition for Survivor). Asking what word a person who has been sexually assaulted prefers to use is best.

In the context of sexual assault, a survivor refers to any person who has experienced a sexual assault. Using the term survivor often indicates that an individual has begun their healing journey and/or after time has passed after an assault. Many individuals who have experienced sexual assault prefer to be called survivors, though some choose to use the term victim (see definition of Victim). Asking what word a person who has been sexually assaulted prefers to use is best.

An offender, also known as a perpetrator or assailant, is someone who commits an offense against the law which includes sexual assault.

Trauma is a psychological, emotional, and physical response to an event that is significantly distressing to the individual who experienced it. Acute trauma occurs after a single event. Chronic trauma results from a series of repeated and prolonged events such as domestic violence, abuse, or racism. Complex Trauma is the result of experiencing multiple types of traumatic events.

A trigger is a sensory stimulus that reminds the brain and body of previous trauma. It can be any type of sensory including sound, site, smell, touch, or taste. It can also occur when thinking about a traumatic memory. This stimulus causes the body to enter into a trauma response and it may feel as though the event is happening again. Sometimes you may experience a trigger without understanding what memory it is connected with.

Rape culture is a culture in which sexual violence is treated as the norm and victims are blamed for their own assaults. The focus is not just on sexual violence itself, but about cultural norms and institutions that protect perpetrators, allows harm to occur without consequence, shames victims, and requires unreasonable sacrifices be made to avoid sexual assault.

A whisper network is an informal chain of conversations within a community about persons to be aware of because of rumors, allegations or known incidents of sexual misconduct, harassment or assault. The information is often shared by word of mouth or online in private communities, forums, apps, spreadsheets, and crowd-sourced documents. Whisper networks can also help victims identify a common offender and come forward together. Oftentimes, these networks face criticism or are dismantled because they lack security mechanisms to prevent abuse by users or could lead to the pursuit of a defamation claim.

According to Restorative Justice Exchange, Restorative justice is a response to wrongdoing that prioritizes repairing harm and recognizes that maintaining positive relationships with others is a core human need. It seeks to address the root causes of crime, even to the point of transforming unjust systems and structures.

Title IX is a federal civil rights law in the United States that was passed as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. This law prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program that receives funding from the federal government.

Safety Exits are buttons that are typically used on websites that survivors may visit such as rape crisis centers, crisis lines, and even Callisto. By clicking the safety exit button, it immediately closes the website and will take you to a different webpage. This can be used if you need to quickly exit a website so no one knows what you are searching. You may still need to clear your browsing history.