Rape culture is a notion that connects rape and sexual violence to the culture of a society therein making the feelings and practices around it seem normal, excusable or even pardonable. This past Tuesday, March 25, 2014, a blogger from feminist blog “Feministing,” Zerlina Maxwell (@ZerlinaMaxwell) started the #rapecultureiswhen hashtag that quickly trended throughout the evening with posts sent in on rape culture beliefs people hold today. Many were very powerful and insightful pointing out many major arguments in the rape culture controversy such as how some school have banned leggings or yoga pants because the are “revealing” or “distracting,” or that we are teaching girls how not to be raped instead of teaching boys not to rape, or that men can be raped just like women, or even simply how no means no.
The concept of rape culture is a very real view today and many ignore it as if it is a joke. But these arguments have factual and accurate foundation. A rape culture condones the physical and emotional violence and intimidation against women as the norm. Many people still judge whether or not the victim really was a victim by their actions and decisions beforehand. Questions like, “what were you wearing,” or “did you drink,” are constant reminders that we judge victims of rape on a scale of innocence and if they may have been ‘asking for it.’ A phenomenon called victim blaming is the correct terminology for this situation. It is where the victim receives the blame for their rape based on the circumstances of their attack. This is undoubtedly a wrong mindset to have. It is undeniable that our society and media encourage women to be sexually attractive and then blame them for it when they fall prey to horrible incidents such as rape.
According to the CDC, in the U.S., a woman’s chance of being raped is one in five. A woman’s chance of being raped in college is one in four. According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), about 54 percent of rapes go unreported. And the percentage of rapists who are never incarcerated is 97 percent. Statistics don’t lie. It is almost as if that in this society, being a rape victim carries more of a stigma than being a rapist. We are taught that rape in every instance is wrong and that no means no. Without consent, any sexual intercourse is rape. There is no exception. There are no excuses.
