Sexual Violence And Rape Culture

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.

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

It is six o’clock in the evening, a special news segment on world affairs is on the television. The journalist is doing a piece on inhumane practices that occur in third world countries, one of these travesties being rape. The voices of women who have been stolen from their homes and have been taken advantage of against their own will infiltrate the air. These personal stories have an incredulously powerful impact on those listening and make one think “How could such an outrageous thing happen?” Truth be told, these horrors are not just happening in far-off places, but they are happening right now in the United States of America. The very simple fact that one is oblivious to the magnitude of sexual violence in their very own country is an

Two of the most serious public health and social issues faced in the world today are sexual assault

The term ‘rape culture’ was coined by feminists in the United States in 1970. The term itself was designed to illustrate the ways in which society blamed victims of sexual assault, and how the normalization of male sexual violence was acceptable. Rape culture can stem from the acceptance of rape as a daily occurrence, manifested as a male prerogative. There is a hesitation by the authorities to go against the patriarchal cultural norms, hence linking nonconsensual sex to the cultural disposition of society. The patriarchal perspective of rape culture, embedded with gender inequality and misogyny are passed through generations which ultimately leads to the extensive institutional and social acceptance of rape. Actions which advocate sexist ideals are utilized to justify and validate normative misogynistic perceptions. Rape culture sexualizes violence inflicted upon women, as it serves as a continuum of a society which views a women’s body to be sexually available by default, deriving from the overall domination and objectification of a female. The underlying cause of rape culture is localized as it based upon the social aspects of culture. For example, countries with a prolific ‘war culture’ tend to emphasize violence and masculinity, and therefore rape is viewed as a normal facet of society. I intend to parallel the element of rape culture to the enforcement of social rules and the conditioning of gender roles. I plan on analyzing the notion that within the encompassment of

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

What is rape culture? There is one definition most people agree on, rape culture is an excuse for people who are sexually aggressive to do anything they want and be free from the consequence. In a rape culture, the victims are threatened; they are physically and emotionally terrorized. Most people assume that rape culture is a situation that is unavoidable. There are many everyday examples of rape culture, and campus rape and sexual assault are one of them. There are causes and effects of rape and sexual assaults in college and university campuses.

What is sexual victimization? Sexual victimization is a very broad area; there are so many types of sexual victimization, these types include statutory rape, date rape and acquaintance rape. Statutory rape- this rape in Florida means if a person is fewer than 16 they cannot consent if they are 16-18 years of age they cannot legally consent if the defendant is 24 or older. These laws vary depending on the state. A stranger rape is just as it implies a rape in which you do not know the perpetrator, as opposed to an acquaintance rape- a rape where you are familiar with the perpetrator. A date rape is a rape that is done where some sort of relationship or physical attraction was involved. Anyone can become a victim, anyone who suffers physical,

Any behavior or physical contact of any sexual form that causes an individual to be uncomfortable is sexual violence. This occurs in situations whereby an individual is taken advantage of or is coerced, taken by force or by use of manipulation to participate in undesirable sexual acts. This can be in the form of acts of rape, incest or sexual abuse against children.

In today's society, the promotion of rape culture is heavily prevalent. Despite the world making massive headway in a multitude of social injustices, victim blaming and the willingness to ignore the truth in media are still major issues. Although one may not realize, both local and global media frequently create pieces that are biased - using prejudice in favor of one group or individual - to blindly sway public opinion.

It is not unexpected that we as a society do not want to recognize that assault and sexual brutality is standard. This is no surprise because most of us would rather believe that the terrible realities we hear about are not real or that, at least, we cannot do anything about it. The fact of the matter is, the acceptance of rape as normal is terrible. Be that as it may, by denying its existence, we keep on allowing attackers to go unpunished and leave survivors hushed. Rape culture is a giant issue; however, in the event that we focus on tending to each of these parts, we can move even closer to eradicating rape culture.

Today’s society is one in which the idea of male superiority dominates, one that Edwards et al. says fosters the idea that “rape ideologies emanate from a patriarchal system” (qtd. in Franiuk). The influences on modern American culture, what it idolizes and produces, are often times truly sickening. Popular television programs and other media present depictions of women that promote a society of rape culture. The rapper Eminem, just one of the famous rap artists who has a bad reputation, refers to women in very derogatory ways. His song “Kim” was released in 2000, and is believed to have been written about his then-wife, Kim Mathers. In it, the rapper says, “Sit down bitch/If you move again I'll beat the shit out of you,” among other things, and even goes on to describe other types of violence that he wants to commit against her (Bass). When taking into consideration Eminem’s subject matter, his popularity is alarming. His music, and thousands of other songs like his, is filling the ears of impressionable youth and naïve adults, permeating their minds with horrible ideas.

Most people would agree that as you grow up you learn by seeing, feeling ,touching , smelling, and hearing . Albert Bandura supports this by a theory he created called the Social Learning Theory (McLeod, 2011). Social Learning Theory is a theory that explains that behavior is learned by your social environment, interactions and observations of others. With this theory I would say it supports opinion in which I would say that rape is not something somebody just decides one day to do. I believe that rape is learned throughout time. There are many social and even media factors that sometimes may come off with the intention that rape is acceptable. In some media factors they may even perceive that being forcibly raped is pleasurable. Movies tend to do it often and sometimes movies don 't realize that what people see on television can sometimes influence people to see these acts as a norm. For instance the fact that a college kid is in a frat and he 's in a party there is a good percentage that he would reenact what television had stereotype frats boys to do. Television would label the frat boys as potential rapist and the human mind would consider that when you take on that role as a frat boy. One of the biggest media factors all the way from television to the internet that for so many years that perceive rape as acceptable is pornography.

According to the Department of Justice the low estimate of women raped every year in America is 300,000. Somehow this is not a problem to America, but this is a problem for too many people. The number of rapes for the rest of time should be zero. Despite the fact that this can cause physical harm and emotional trauma, America does not consider rape culture to be real. America needs to change their way of thinking and diminish rape culture by teaching people not to rape, making all people accountable for their actions, and supporting those who are brave enough to come forward with their stories.

European colonists carried over quite a lot when they arrived on our eastern shores: hope, bravery, a sense of independence, the will to explore, and a patriarchal system that created a rape culture fed by the unwavering idea that women are lesser than men and should just respect that fact of life. They were quick to force this way of life on the local Native American populations, and these ideals are the reason that rape culture exists to the extent it does today. The modern normalization of rape and sexual violence is, like it was for the Native Americans and slaves, a way to keep control over women and minority populations. Once one recognizes this, the reason why rapists (especially ones that assault those of a minority population) are generally given light sentences or even allowed to roam free becomes clear. Although the patriarchy constantly casts rape as a horrible crime that should be punished to the highest degree, it doesn’t truly walk the walk. It still sees women as a lesser being, and therefore doesn’t prosecute rape to the fullest in order to scare women and keep them in line.