“The rape kit backlog offers one of the clearest and most shocking demonstrations of how sexual assault victims are regarded in our society. Testing rape kits sends a fundamental and crucial message to victims of sexual violence: ‘You matter. What happened to you matters. Your case matters.’”
Mariska Hargitay
I Am Evidence is an Emmy award-winning documentary, produced by the Joyful Heart Foundation’s founder, Mariska Hargitay, exposing the alarming number of untested rape kits in the United States through a character–driven narrative. The documentary brings much-needed attention to the disturbing pattern of how the criminal justice system has historically treated sexual assault survivors. The film explores these questions through survivors’ experiences, as they trace the fates of their kits and re-engage in the criminal justice process.
Content Awareness:
This video explicitly mentions sexual assault and may be difficult for some viewers to watch.
“I am evidence that regardless of what happens to you, you can get through it. You can move past it. You can grow. You can change for the better. I am evidence that there is more to that box, there is a human being there. It is not just a kit. This is a person.”
Ericka
I Am Evidence illuminates how the system has impeded justice while also highlighting those who are leading the charge to work through the backlog and pursue long-awaited justice in these cases. I Am Evidence shines a spotlight on the remarkable efforts in communities across America to bring an end to this injustice.
I Am Evidence aims to provoke, outrage, mobilize the public, underline the urgency of this effort, and ultimately, join forces with advocates across this country to end the backlog.
