Introduction
The average man may possess everyday fears, such as embarrassment or rejection, while the common woman has to deal with the fear of being sexually assaulted. Sexual assault is any type of unconsented sexual contact, and is most frequently associated with rape. Sexual assault is a particularly sensitive issue between Feminists and Men’s Rights Activists. Feminists believe that victims are disenfranchised in society and the court of law, seen through the invalidation of victims and fear from society’s backlash, as well as authorities’ improper conduct under such cases. Men’s Rights Activists, however, carry the idea that victims are given too much trust in society, as they could make a false accusation of rape and people may believe
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However, if this belief is examined more carefully within society, one would see that it does not hold much truth, and that in reality, the exact opposite occurs. In our society, false accusations of sexual assault are rare, and the embedded misogyny in our culture is the cause of the marginalization of sexual assault victims.
I. The Occurrence of False Accusations
False accusations of sexual assault has been a concept which has been relied on by society in order to try to argue against victims’ accusations of sexual assault, reducing the little trust which victims have by society in the first place. False accusations only account for “2 percent of felony convictions,” and that is when they are based on the combined data from exonerations in rape and murder cases. Therefore, false accusations of rape account for less than 2 percent of convictions. Based on that, false accusations are very unlikely, and therefore cannot be relied on in attempt to invalidate rape victims. Even if a false accusation is made, it is very improbable to make it very far in the criminal justice system. If
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Sixteen of these twenty will be prosecuted, but only ten will result in conviction” (Shen). Of all rape reports, only 10 percent end in conviction. Therefore, if a false accusation, which already has a low probability of occurring, is made, it then only has a 10 percent chance of being convicted. This 10 percent chance is likely even lower, as if the case is properly investigated, a false accusation will not end in a conviction. False accusations are not the problem in society, but rather sexual assault. Underreporting, paired with the increase in rape, demonstrates the growing urgency to deal with the problem of sexual assault before it gets out of hand. Although false accusations of rape are without a doubt a problem, they are in no way as big as the growing problem of rape in our society. False accusations should not be society’s main concern, but rather the number of sexual assaults which occur. In the military alone, sexual assault has grown, with “about 3,000 service members reporting being sexually assaulted in 2012, but a confidential Department of Defense survey suggests the figure is closer to 26,000 — up 35 percent over 2010” (Koons). These numbers may even be
According to a 2000 Criminal Victimization Survey, only 16% of reported rapes result in prison sentences. Furthermore, the closer the relationship between the victim and the offender the greater the likelihood that law enforcement will not be told about the sexual assault. The Air Force has been aggressively addressing this national problem. Military commanders have a variety of punishment options for alleged offenders. The disposition in
“Rape is unique. No other violent crime is so fraught with controversy, so enmeshed in dispute and in the politics of gender and sexuality… And within the domain of rape, the most highly charged area of debate concerns the issue of false allegations. For centuries, it has been asserted and assumed that women “cry rape,” that a large proportion of rape allegations are maliciously concocted for purposes of revenge or other motives.”
In America, 1 out of 6 women fall victim to rape at some point in their lives—completed or not (“Victims of Sexual Violence” 1). However, this is only one form of sexual assault that women are forced to face. Groping and other non-consensual, sexual acts are also examples of sexual assault (“Sexual Assault” 1).. Many perpetrators of sexual assault roam free, practically unaffected and likely to commit another similar act, while the woman could feel the effects of this event for her entire life. This problem affects women from around the globe—and it’s time that we put an end to it, because if we don’t, who will? If boys were to be taught how and how not to treat women in their early years, sexual assault would not be as prevalent, thus, women, including us, would not have to worry as much about enduring this kind of torment.
Last week, the White House released a short, celebrity packed, 60-second public service announcement (PSA) on the topic of sexual assault. 1 is 2 Many addressed those who are in control of preventing sexual assault as its intended audience was those who can put a stop to sexual violence: the perpetrators or would-be offenders. Although this one minute announcement completed the task of bringing sexual assault to the forefront of discussion, it failed to encompass the central issues concerning the culture of sexual assault: societal misperceptions, the victims, and the justice system. Sexual assault is a phenomenon that has been around for centuries; the culture of sexual assault is rooted in both legal practices and societal perceptions.
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without that person's consent. If one is accused of rape there is not much the person who is being accused can do to fight against the allegation. Therefore, those who are falsely accused of rape almost have no other choice than to take the punishment for a crime they did not commit. It is an injustice in America that those who are falsely accused of rape are prosecuted as if they did the crime without substantial evidence. Ways to fix this injustice are looking at older cases to ensure that others have not been falsely accused, calling all witnesses if there is the allegation goes to court, and finally charging the accuser for making the false claims.
Even though democrats discuss rape culture as one of their major topics, it has been statistically proven that people lie about being raped in order to provide alibis; a rape accusation can preserve one’s reputation. In an investigation concerning rape cases, researchers brought back the cases of 109 women who had rape cases that did not have enough evidence to prove their point (Gross 66). When they subjected the women to a polygraph test, “41% of all of the forcible rape complaints were found to be false,” so therefore, of the women who are not believed about rape, approximately four out of every ten are being dishonest (Gross 66). Although rape is an issue within America, modern feminists are not always correct-- rape has been proven to be an alibi for some women. When trying to maintain one’s image, like Ms. Jones did, to accuse one of rape happens more often than one may
Rape and sexual harassment are both two common forms of sexual violence prevalent in the United States. Although both events can happen to men, women are more prone to face these occurrences. According to the National Violence Against Women Survey, “78% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are women and 22% are men” (“Domestic Violence Statistics”). In 2011, companies experienced sexual harassment charges at 11% in relation to all charges brought forth to businesses, and 16% of these charges were filed by men ("Sex Discrimination and Sexual Harassment"). These women are eternally tainted by these occurrences, as Jean Améry wrote, “whoever was tortured, stays tortured” (Brison 5). Our American society rarely considers the effect on
Male rape victims are less likely to report their crime for various reasons. According to Nicholas Groth and Ann Burgess (1980), male rape myths stems from the traditional viewpoint of masculinity that most men are supposed to be strong, dominant and heterosexual. Thus, leading victims to believe that men cannot be raped and the effect of sexual assault should be miniscule for a man than it is for a woman (Carpenter, 2009; Groth and Burgess, 1980: p. 808). In accordance to Gillian Mezey and Michael King (1989), male rape victims that do report their crime are treated differently by the police and they find themselves being completely ignored, questioned as criminals, or being ridiculed. Many males who do
I choose this topic because sexual assault is one of the most offensive crimes committed in our society. Not only is it a threat to the community, but it has a physically and psychologically effect on the victim in many ways. For the last couple of decades, sexual assault, rape, and child molestation has become the focal point of public concerns today. According to a 1993 National Crime Victimization Survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, about 500,000 rapes or sexual assaults occur each year (Statistics, March 2010). The Department of Justice states that, “rape crimes have risen nearly three times as fast as the total crime rate”, although other studies have shown statistics that are in
False accusation is an insult to real victims of sexual assault and rape; it de-values the traumatic experience they have been through. Serious allegations like these shouldn’t be a case of he said, she said it should be based on fact and hard evidence, like every other crime. And although a sensitive subject the view of both parties should be treated equal, rather than a battle to prove
Social Media and local news coverage of high profile famous cases of sexual assault can give a misleading perceptions of the actual cause of the problem. Some of these articles talk about the stereotype with ‘stranger danger’ sexual assault and how it is actually not true.Most people who experience sexual assault are assaulted by someone who they actually
As reported by, feminist criminologists, their perspective of rape and sexual assault differ between liberal and radical feminists. Liberal feminists’ viewpoint in regards of rape as a gender-neutral assault on a persons’ autonomy and mainly focusing on the harm that rape can do to an individual. In contrast, radical feminists describe rape as a subject to be recognised and understood as a major pillar of patriarchy; a social system in which men claim the positions of dominance and control of the central norms and values that are linked with masculinity (Johnson, 2005: p. 4-15). The radical feminists believe that rape is a patriarchal structure within male power, thus displaying the harms that rape can do to an individual and as a group of women. Furthermore, the radical feminists approach view rape as male have the control and authority over the use of women’s bodies, which involves the sexual and reproductive. Hence, this is the core element of patriarchy, Radical feminist believe that rape is one of many forms that connects men’s sexual exploitation and violence, as well as, reinforcing women’s oppression (Whisnant, 2013).
A major perpetuating factor in misinformation regarding sexual assault and rape culture is the media. Confusion about what constitutes rape leads many students to question whether or not they were a "real victim". Rape isn't always a violent crime committed by a stranger down some dark alley. It can
In America, there is a war raging. This war is not fought with guns blaring and casualties strewn across the battlefield. It is a far more subtle war that divides to its very core. There seems to be no way out and the victory of one side over the other will mean that no one wins. This war is engrained into our society in the pursuit of equality between men and women. However, there is a divide within this pursuit, a tendency to side with one extreme or the other: modern feminism and the men’s rights movement. These paradigms, on the surface, seem harmless. However, when taking a closer look, the issues that are addressed in these movements are further cause for the division of men and women. While promoting the idea of equality, at the
In the United States rape completely toxic and it’s a dangerous myth. On college campuses where drinking is prevalent, most victims don’t report their assault to the police because of the fear of being blamed for the incident. “A recent National Crime Victimization report showed that only 55% of sexual assaults reported in their survey were reported to the police” (Hayes, Abbott, Cook 2016). Hayes goes on to explain that rape myths are defined as “attitudes and false belief held