Table of ContentsRape Culture: An IntroductionRape Culture in the CurrentRape Culture in the PastRape Culture: An IntroductionWhat Is Rape Culture rape? There is no other way to begin discussing this major issue plaguing our world. We must first examine the definition of rape culture. A rape culture is one in which victims of such crimes are blamed for being victims. There are rape jokes and rape news stories that are just about boys being boys. It includes “the television, music, advertising, legalese, laws, words and images” (FORCE: Disrupting Rape Culture 1) that make violence and sexual coercion of women seem so natural and normal that people start to believe that rape is a criminal act. just an inevitable fact of life. Women are sold by the media as objects of male desire. Things are perceived as such and people are led to believe that it is inevitable. People are taught to believe that this way of thinking about women is the same as it always has been and will continue to be. They are made to believe that there is no way to change what is happening or prevent it in the future. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay America's rape culture is visible everywhere. An article highlights the differences in people's attitudes towards rape. Last December, the news broke about the horrific gang rape and murder of a young woman in India. Millions of Americans expressed outrage at such an event. Many articles have been published criticizing both the Indian government and its rape culture. It was a major story in newspapers across the country. They expressed their disgust at what happened and their concern for justice for the victim's family. Around the same time, an article was published about a sixteen-year-old girl who had been raped while unconscious at a party in Steubenville. This story hadn't received as much attention. It remained hidden for almost a year and was not investigated or given any special attention. The American media has been much slower to expose its rape culture. There were no long discussions about punishing the guilty. Instead, it focuses on the responsibility for so-called hero worship in a small football-centric town and the social media aspect of the matter. Why is this matter not the center of attention? Maybe it's because America is trying to hide its rape culture from the public. Showing outrage over rapes and murders in India is what is considered acceptable and also shows the faults of other countries. Acknowledge that there is a rape culture in America? Blasphemy. Rape Culture in the News A recent article on rape culture was just published in the Orlando Sentinel. It's titled "The 'Rapebait' Email Shows the Ugly Side of Fraternity Culture." » A fraternity member at Georgia Tech emailed his brothers a guide on seducing women. He described how, to pick up women, you had to get them very drunk. The man added that they should just keep buying them drinks. He went on to describe that once the women were drunk, the men had to go on the dance floor with them. His instructions included explicit details about grinding and groping. The instructions were intended only to ensure thatmen get what they wanted, with total disregard for the women who would be victims here. The member signed the email with “Luring rapebait.” Although he stated in the middle of his email that there was to be no rape, he later signed it as such. What does this prove? This just shows that even though the man was trying to keep his brothers out of trouble, he still views women as rapists. They are just objects for men to pursue and get drunk on. This whole ordeal just shows that rape culture is perpetuated on college campuses. Most rapes on college campuses go unreported, and those that are reported are never investigated as thoroughly as they should be. Along with this, fraternity members are more "prone to sexual assault than other students" ("'Rapebait' Email Shows Ugly Side of Fraternity Culture"). Fraternity members seem to think, more than other men, that they are allowed to have wives. Perhaps the whole fraternity lifestyle perpetuates this. Let's come to a big question here: how could anyone think this email was acceptable? Let's not just rape and assault women, let's teach others how to do it too! The entire email just shows how some men believe they are entitled to women and that rape and assault are not bad. This fraternity member told all his brothers that the only surefire and acceptable way to pick up women is to get them drunk so they are less able to defend themselves. This is just one example of how rape culture is viewed around the world and continues to be seen on college campuses today. Another example of rape culture in the news is the recent article about Elizabeth Smart published on thinkprogress.org. Smart, a victim of kidnapping and sexual assault, turned her attention to education and rape culture. She pointed out that abstinence-only education, typically practiced in more conservative countries, is another way of shaming rape victims. This education “ends up making rape victims feel worthless” (“How Elizabeth Smart Is Take On Rape Culture”). Victims are made to believe that they are no longer clean. This view is continually applied. Smart went on to explain that abstinence education is just one of many ways victims of sexual assault can be shamed. She gave the example of social media. The rape was documented by people at the party who simply watched the ordeal unfold. They then uploaded photos to Twitter calling the victim a drunk slut, etc. The victim shames this girl by insinuating that it was her fault. The audience stood there and thought it was funny, which is just disgusting. The article also discusses Smart's transformation from victim to advocate. After being kidnapped and held captive for nine months, she put this girl to shame. began using his experience to help others express themselves. She received a lot of publicity in the months leading up to the release of her book about her story. This allowed her to speak out about rape culture. The media has given it, and therefore rape culture, the attention it deserves. She tells the victims that they can report their attack. There is finally information on how victim blaming has become a national issue. After ignoring this issue for decades, Smart used his past experiences to finally bring it to light. This question should notno longer be silenced and ignored as it was for many years. America must wake up to the growing problem it faces. Furthermore, the perpetrators of rape culture are not only men. Some women share the belief that women who dress too provocatively or drink alcohol are "asking for it." This was seen in an article published on Slate.com. Although some of the ideas in the article emphasize that they are not intended to blame victims, the article itself is titled "The Best Rape Prevention: Tell College Girls to Stop Losing So Much." This in itself is victim blaming. To say that the main reason women are raped is because they are drunk is to avoid the real problem. The real problem is that men consume alcohol to take advantage of women. It's not women who drink, it's men who take advantage of a woman who drinks alcohol. Some points in the article have merit, such as that women, especially in academic settings, should watch what and how much they drink. And then there are the abominable comments like the author telling his son "not to be the drunk frat boy who finds himself accused of raping a drunk classmate" ("The Best Rape Prevention: Tell the People students to stop getting so lost"). What does this mean? Don Don't tell your son not to rape, tell him not to be accused of raping a drunk girl. Where is the logic in this? This article only proves that men need to learn not to blame women for their behavior. These actions will not solve the problem or help anyone. Telling women that it was their drinking that caused them to be assaulted is a clear perpetuation of victim blaming. There are a lot of examples of rape culture in the news. cases continue to flow as people try to figure out what is right and wrong. People need to learn that it is not acceptable to blame victims for their abuse. Perpetrators must be held accountable for their actions and punished as such. These reports show that rape culture exists not only in victim blaming, but also in ridiculing women. As seen in the fraternity email, men are taught that women are just objects that they can, in this case, pick up at bars and parties. Rape Culture in the Past Rape culture has been a targeted issue for many years. Over the past few decades, many attempts have been made to explore and create ways to completely get rid of rape culture. One such lecture was given in the fall of 1983 at the Midwest Regional Conference of the National Organization for Changing Men. The speech was given to a room full of about five hundred men with a few women here and there. The audience was mainly made up of “politicians who call themselves anti-sexist” (“I want a twenty-four hour truce during which there is no rape”). The panelist, Andrea Dworkin, asked the men why, as a general, they have been so slow to recognize that women are "human in precisely the measure and quality that you are" ("IWTFHTDWTINR"). She went on to explain that women don't have time to stop and teach men everything there is to know. on women's rights. They don't have time to explain to men why rape and assault are wrong. Dworkin goes on to say that there is a very simple reason why these assaults and rapes occur..