What were you wearing? Did you drink? Were you drunk? Were you being flirty? What did you eat that day? Why did you go to that party? Why did you put yourself in this position?…These are the questions a woman is faced with once she reports herself as a victim of rape. Without comfort from authorities, there are hundreds of cases of women remaining silent, apprehensive to report for the fear of being held responsible for another’s violent actions.
Rape culture is essentially the dehumanization of sexual assault victims and, in particular, women by “victim blaming,” or believing that people are at fault when they are sexually abused. It is the objectification of a person for sexual gain as well as normalized speech about sexually assaulting both men and women without consent. Rape culture can be seen in the media, within homes, schools, communities and other countries.
We at the Collegiate feel strongly against the interrogation of victims with a multitude of questions that accuse them as an instigator of a sexual abuse or rape situation.
According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network, For every 1,000 rapes in the U.S., only 334 are reported to the police. Of those reports, 63 lead to arrest and only 13 of those rapes are referred to prosecutors. Only seven of those rapes will lead to a felony conviction and only six will be incarcerated. This means that 994 out of 1,000 rapists in the U.S. will walk free from their crimes and 1,000 men and women will become another statistic of sexual abuse in a recurring event that takes place every eight seconds.
Between the first two Presidential Debates, Republican nominee Donald Trump was caught on a recorded tape, filmed back in 2005, expressing lewd and degrading comments about women both single and married. This vulgar recording, with over millions of views, has reached thousands of American families along with other countries, displaying a tolerance as well as acceptance of rape culture.
But how do we defeat rape culture and prevent rape and sexually abuse cases for the upcoming generations in today’s society? We at the Collegiate believe children should be educated on rape culture and its effects on both men and women. Instead of only teaching young girls how not to get raped, it is every parent’s responsibility to speak to their children, boys and girls, about respecting consent. By beginning the education of rape culture at a young age, children will have a basic knowledge of sexual abuse and know when to identify it. This could result in numerous positive outcomes or prevent a sexual assault from occurring, which we are hoping, reshapes the future society to promote the protection of each individual.
If you have experienced sexual assault, abuse or rape, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.
