“It’s estimated that hundreds of thousands of rape kits sit untested in police and crime lab storage facilities across the country.”
To raise much needed awareness about the untested rape kit backlog and engage the public in helping solve this problem, The Joyful Heart Foundation created this 60-second PSA entitled Shelved.
Developed with Invisible Man, an agency founded by Rachel Howald and directed by famed filmmaker and cinematographer Ellen Kuras, Shelved focuses on the impact that untested rape kits have on survivors. “Behind every kit is a person — a sexual assault survivor — waiting for justice,” the nonprofit foundation says on their website. “Through this campaign we are seeking to activate grassroots support for our work in state capitols around the country to change the way rape kits are handled, expand survivors’ rights, and to ensure every single kit is tested. Every single kit, in every state.”
For more information and to see the statistics and status of rape kit testing in your state, visit End the Backlog.