In a recent article, CNN reporter John D. Sutter referred to the state of Alaska as
“the national epicenter of rape.” Sutter is not some avid anti-Alaskan,
nor does he seem to harbor any irrational dislikes of the Pacific Northwest. Rather, Sutter wrote the article in response
to the 2012 FBI crime statistics, which showed Alaska to have the highest rate of
reported rape. According to the FBI report, eighty
rapes are reported for every 100,000 people; almost three times the national
average of twenty-seven. In comparison
to New Jersey, where rape is reported the least, Alaska’s rapes per 100,000
people is seven times higher. Sutter’s
report went even deeper and found that 59% of women in Alaska have experienced
“sexual or intimate partner violence, and that four in ten women reported to
have been raped or sexually assaulted.
