Rape Culture: Are They Really Asking For It?

In New York rape is categorized as a hate crime, and the definition of rape in that state is forced penile penetration of a vagina. Such a limited definition is problematic for other kinds of rape victims. This could send a message to victims who are male or experienced a different kind of rape such as penetration of a foreign object or other sexual harassment. When they need to send a clear message that every rape because no two rapes are alike, that they will receive justice for the specific act committed against them. Rape Culture affects the justice system and the way a man is prosecuted by trivializing and chastening the

Many individuals might wonder, what is rape culture? “Rape Culture is an environment in which rape is prevalent and in which sexual violence against women is normalized and excused in the media and popular culture. Rape culture is perpetuated through the use of misogynistic language, the objectification of women’s bodies, and the glamorization of sexual violence, thereby creating a society that disregards women’s rights and safety.” Most women limit their behavior because of the existence of rape. (Marshall University)

In “Tell Me There’s No Rape Culture”, published in the Huffington Post in October of 2016, Ali Owens explains the inconsistent theories on how a woman can prevent getting raped to showcase the fact that the underlying problem is that women are being blamed for the rape. The author states that the problem with society is that women are being shamed and silenced by individuals who do not believe in rape culture. Victims are trapped in a lose-lose situation. Women who come forward are asked about how they got into the situation. Why was she walking alone at night? Why didn’t she fight harder? Was she giving off mixed signals? Instead of prosecuting the rapist, more time is spent

17.7 million: The number of women who have been involved in attempted or completed rape. 293,066: The number of rapes in the U.S. a year. 284,275: The number of sexual offences that result in no conviction or jail time. 49,013: The number of repeat offenders still on the streets, most committing around 6 rapes. 4,000-17,000: The range of pregnancies resulting from rape. 107: The number of seconds between rapes in the U.S. 35: the percentage of men that would rape if they knew they could get away with it. 3: The number of rapes, out of 100, that will result in any prison time at all. 1: the number of likely victims that will seek help or justice for what happened. The statistics show that a woman is more at risk of sexual assault in the U.S. than in any other developed nation. The United States has one of the highest rape rates in the world. Yet there are still those out there that don’t believe that rape actually exists. Victims of rape are forced into a societal confinement that encapsulates them in their own self solitude.

(US Department of Justice- Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2014). While the numbers are startling, what is most alarming, is that it took eighty years for the government to change a definition that was wrong from the beginning. Moreover, this attitude of ignorance and apathy towards rape victims has trickled down and can be seen in the attitudes of the American population. While many feminists have suggested that rape is a tool used by a patriarchal society to maintain a status quo, and rape myths are tools used to justify this violence against women, what I believe is that rape myths are more pervasive than this explanation. Rape myths and their acceptance is in fact a part of the status quo, determined by the gender role construct reflected in current American society, Without a radical change in views towards gender roles rape myths will continue to be widely accepted, and victims will

Blaming rape victims for their experiences allows guilty men and women to go free and escape the law. In the article ´US Judge Todd Baugh Sorry for Blaming Teenage Victim Cherice Moralez for Her Own Rape¨, it is said that ¨the defendant only had to serve 30 days in jail¨. The article continues to describe how the defendant then paid his bail and slipped away with only fifteen days spent behind bars. In a different article. Mandi Gray laments "I am tired of people

Sexual violence is a significant social and cultural problem within America and all over the world. Within the United States nearly 1 in 5 women – or nearly 22 million – have been raped in their lifetimes. Arrest rates for sexual assault cases are low as they are hard to investigate because of the effects of the trauma itself. According to the National Crime Victimization Survey, approximately 12% of the 283,200 annual rape or sexual assault victimizations from year 2005-2010 resulted in an arrest at the scene or during a follow-up investigation. Findings from the same survey revealed that more than one-third of women reported experiencing a sexual assault at some point during their lifetime. Within American society, rape constitutes an experience

A society only becomes a rape culture when “rape is prevalent and in which sexual violence against women is normalized and excused in the media and popular culture” (“Rape Culture,” n.d.). The United States is a rape culture because of

Rape Culture is a term that was coined by feminists in the United States in the 1970’s. It was designed to show the ways in which society blamed victims of sexual assault and normalized male sexual violence. (“What is Rape Culture?”) “ We’re told that 1 in 5 women will be raped, this isn’t true. I’m not sure why this truth should be difficult

In the United States individuals of both genders are being sexually violated, yet way too often their offenders often get off scot free or with very little punishment. Rape culture exists because we don't believe it does. The first step to ending such culture is to name the real problem, which is victim-blaming. We treat victims like they’re responsible, which would be obscenely different for any other criminal charge. When a sexual assault is reported on the news the first questions the media asks are about the victim’s sobriety, clothes, or sexuality. The right question is, “What made the attacker think this was acceptable?” Changing a mind set that has been engraved in us for centuries is going to be strenous, yet not impossible. It starts

Fitzgerald and Lonsway define myths of rape as “false but persistent beliefs and stereotypes regarding forced sexual intercourse and the victims and perpetrators of such acts” (Kahlor). These rape myths include opinions that women who act or dress offensively are asking to be raped, or women who claim to have been raped when they later regretted having consensual sex. While it may be a common myth that some women lie about being sexually assaulted, “the fact is that only 2% of rape reports prove to be intentionally reported falsely” (Bohmer). An additional flagrant myth about rape is that no actually means yes, and that being raped is what some women secretly want. Although there a many myths about rape that are related to the rape victim and what she was doing and wearing, there are many myths about rape that define the rapist and create false images on what people actually commit rape crimes. An example of one of those myths is that “rapists are sex-starved, insane, or both” and that the action of rape is strictly a passion crime (Iconis). These assertions provide many

This is a problem everyone should be concerned about regardless of gender. Rape culture is damaging society in countless ways. Rape cases must be taken more seriously and that cannot happen when jokes are made daily about raping someone or the ideology prevails that rape is a myth for attention seekers. Victims deserve to receive closure that the awful person who took advantage of them would serve time but, sadly, that is a rarely the case. As long as this continues it is less likely people will report rape and those criminals will go

Merril Smith’s Encycolpedia of Rape defines the term “rape culture” as “one in which rape and other sexual violence against women . . . [is] both prevalent and considered the norm” (174). Rape is not a new subject in today’s society, its origins reaching far back into history. What causes rape, though? Is it the primal drive of men to exhibit dominance over all women, or do the women share the blame because of the way they dress, act, or do their makeup? Modern American culture would place the blame on the woman who “provoked” the attack; however, a woman should not have to park closer to the building she is entering, nor should she have to carry protection just in case a sexual predator decides that she is his next victim. Men are just as

In our readings, rape culture was defined as a setting where rape is normalized, women are objectified, and victims are blamed (Armstrong, Hamilton, Sweeney 2006). Recently, in my hometown, a venue has faced a lot of controversy for cancelling bands that alleged rapists play in. This has angered many people. I’ve heard fans of the band accuse the victims of lying to get revenge on their ex after a messy breakup, or insist that the band should be allowed to play if the musician hasn’t been convicted. These are both examples of victim blaming; this is defined as when a victim is held responsible for the harm they

Feminist scholarship has argued that rape ideology encourages and justifies sexual coercion, trivializes sexual violence and demeans and devalues women who have experienced sexual assault. The foundation of this argument is based on women's experiences in patriarchal societies. Due to the fact that