Sex, Violence and Transgression - Essay Example

Sex, Violence and Transgression: Possible Utility of Activist/Feminist Campaigns against Rape Myths Name Institution Course Date Sex, Violence and Transgression: Possible Utility of Activist/Feminist Campaigns against Rape Myths Introduction People have different perception regarding rape and this is mainly because of the myths that surround it. Generally, rape is considered as the sexual penetration or contact that is achieved without consent. A sexual act can also be considered as rape when physical force, coercion, threat or deception is applied. In addition, when one party is mentally or physically impaired, physically, asleep or unconscious, the action is considered rape because they have no power to consent (Ervin, 2009, p1). Rape can be perpetrated by either male or female to a victim of the same or different sex (Kahlor & Morrison, 2007, p. 730). There has been uncritical evaluation of the surrounding circumstances, the situation and the characteristics of the rape victim and the perpetrator. The paper critically discusses the possible utility of activist or feminist campaigns against rape myths and how rape myths are perpetuated in mainstream media. Rape Myths There is a long list of myths that surround rape and they include claims such as rape is sex, men are incited by women to rape them, there is an appropriate way in responding to rape situations, the rape victim should be encouraged to forget the rape incidence, the family member support to the victim is essential for the recovery, the rape trauma syndrome is viewed as a transient problem, rapist are usually non white and belong to the lower class and usually are have criminal records, men can’t be rape victims, incest is uncommon, rape is rare and affect few people, women make force claims of being raped quite often, a rapist can be identified through appearance, women do fantasize being raped, a woman cannot be raped by her husband, only immoral women get rapped, rape can be viewed as a just unwanted sex and is not a violent crime, rape takes place at night and outside, rape is an impulsive and spontaneous act, a rapist is usually a stranger to the victim, only attractive young women are raped, sexual assault is a crime of passion, most rapists perpetrate the crime once, rape is an uncontrollable and impulsive act that leads to sexual gratification and that gang rape is rare (Hamlin, 2005, p 1). Activist/Feminist Campaigns against Rape Myths One of the feminist campaigns against the rape myth is the Slutwalk demonstration. This took place after a Toronto police officer said that “for women not to be victimized, they should not be seen to dress like sluts”. These utterances from a police officer are mythical, drawing conclusions that the rape victim should be blamed for their victimization. Although victim blaming and bias against rape victim in sexual assault cases is well documented, the above utterances crystallized the bewildering mass of statistics, tabloid sneers, victim’s stories and the political blindness that have for decades been preoccupying feminist. The women who organized the SlutWalk were not seeking for the right to be seen as or called sluts as their critics claimed, but to have their presence respected. By celebrating the word slut, the activists believed that women would achieve their full autonomy. The word slut has a deep root in patriarchal cultures, and many women have been called a slut for no good reason. This phrase has always been used to refer to a woman who dresses in a way that her skin is over exposed, has many sex partners and one who enjoys sex too much. This term never the less has been reclaimed and transformed from the previous meaning of shame to that of pride (Sarahoverton, 2013, p.1). In the past, movements such as Sexual Revolution and Women’s Liberation Movement played a vital role in fighting the rape myths. The sexual norms campaigned for by the sexual revolutionist lead to achievement of women’s freedom in expressing their own sexuality. The women had an opportunity to understand and to reclaim their sexual bodies as well as developing a sense of self possession; having control over their own bodies. In their fight against rape myths, the SlutWalk activists make an attempt to reverse the victim blaming rhetoric and consequently reclaiming the word slut. The feminist have taken the initiative to correct the myths such as rape should not be perceived as an act of sexual desire but as a way of exercising power over the victim. The society we live in should be encouraged to not only teach its people how to avoid being raped but also to teach that one should not rape. As a result, the attention towards rape victim will be redirected towards rape culture. Similarly, the society needs to not only encourage women to be accompanied when going out but also encourage the men who cannot stop themselves from raping a woman to be accompanied by a friend when going out (Hamlin, 2005, p 1). Feminist critics fail to acknowledge the fact that women have been punished for appearing too slutty and have equally been condemned for being frigid ‘not acting sexual’. This means that sexual self presentation is not the major issue but there are fundamental issues that need to be looked into. Women and especially black women have had destructive representations of their bodies, mind and souls. There is an institutionalized ideology that the black woman’s body is a sexualized object of property, a spectacle of sexuality and of deviant sexual desire (Barnett, 2013, p.1). It is a common phenomenon that women are the victims of rape while men are the perpetrators. The rape myths fails to put into consideration these statistics hence there is a tendency to support sexist discrimination, exploitation and oppression. The feminists argue that the rape myths confirm patriarchal dominance while maintaining female subordination. One of the great achievements of the modern feminism is exposing and naming the violence endured by women. This has helped in creating public awareness regarding the pervasiveness and the seriousness of gendered violence in the society considering sexual harassment and rape. Similarly, attempts to publicize violence against women were made in North America by challenging the widely held sexual and individualistic explanations of it. The notions that wife abuse or rape are personal troubles or a manifestation of the male sexual desire that cannot be controlled have been explained as violence actions that are linked to societal norms of that encourages submissive femininity and aggressive masculinity (McNicol, 2012, p. 14). Feminist have come up with divergent theories as well as interventions for sexual violence. For instant, divergence in feminist theory in regard to the sexual violence occurred during the pornography debates held in the late 1970s and the early 1980s. The argument that pornography degrades women and creates a culture that accepts violence against women was raised. As a result, there was a call for censorship or outright ban of pornography. Other feminist groups advocated for sex positivism (McNicol, 2012, p. 14) advocates for sexual pleasure which includes pornography and sadomasochism with consenting adults. The movements have successfully established gender violence as a form of social problem and reduced stereotyping of the rape victims. Other achievements include; establishing legal reforms that protect rape survivors, legal redefining of sexual assault to show severity of the violence and criminalizing the act of rape. A lot of emphasis has been put to involve shift from preventing rape to managing the rape aftermath (McNicol, 2012, p. 16). Mainstream Media Perpetuates Rape Culture The feminist activists’ campaigns play a vital role in changing the perception of rape and the myths that surround it. The main stream media is seen to trivialize rape actions by the use of rape myths as facts while blaming the rape victim in most cases than blaming the perpetrators. In many cases, the victim has been portrayed as inviting sexual assault through their conduct. For instant, the female chastity protector in Australia maligned Jill Meagher for being so daring even to walk by herself at night (Tedeschi, 2013, p. 1). This form of attitude expressed through the media and by a senior person has a lot of influence on the viewers. The concern that Jill Meagher was alone at night, automatically lays blame on her and somehow it means that she deserved it because she went looking for it, this is a retrograding thought. Study results obtained from researches conducted in the 1980s and in 2012 in US lead to a conclusion that woman get sexually assaulted as a result of being intoxicated or promiscuous. It is unfortunate that the above data demonstrates that the mainstream media has failed to shift from a culture that is sexist/ victim blaming to a culture that is against sex-gender roles. The study results perpetuate the claim that the main stream media make use of the rape myths to shame and blame the rape victim thus removing responsibilities from the rapist. By minimizing rape crimes, the main stream media strengthens rape myths as well as undermining the evil associated with the rape. Another study involving numerous rape cases from a serial rapist and rape cases that involved gang rape shows that the media to some extent disregarded the victim or incorrectly and unfairly represented sexual violence. Apart from reporting the rape crimes incorrectly, the media also scrutinizes the victim and takes off the responsibility from the perpetrator. Since the media has a large audience every day, it perpetuates a sexist and an apathetic culture through sexualizing the rape victims and trivializing violent acts. For instant, sexism and apathy become apparent in the CNN report that covered the rape verdict against Steubenville perpetrators. Poppy Harlow, a CNN reporter, expressed her sadness as she watched the lives of the two young men who had promising futures (star football players and excellent students) fall apart. The above type of media coverage expresses empathy to the perpetrators, and in addition, it influences the CNN audience opinion regarding the case (Barnett, 2013, p.1). The feminist activists raised their concern since the myths surrounding rape have some influence in different institutions. For instant a judge in Victorian Supreme Court in Australia had ordered suppression of information that gives identity of rape perpetrators. A veteran broadcaster working for Melbourne’s 3AW radio station lost his job and faced jail term and fine for publishing suppressed information. Mr. Hinch published the information concerning Adrian Ernest Bayley who had pleaded guilty to raping and murdering Ms Meagher in 2011. Hinch had committed a similar offence in 1980s when he revealed that a particular catholic priest was a pedophile. On different occasions, he was also fined for giving identities of four sex offenders (Merhab & Lillebuen, 2013, p. 1). Just like Hinch, one would wonder why a sex offender’s identity would be protected. By so doing, the rape crime rate would just be rampant due to the fact that the shame associated with the crime is not experienced by the perpetrator. In most cases, the main stream media and other institutions overanalyze the behavior of the victim other than condemning the perpetrator for their action (Beale, 2013, p.1). Conclusion From the discussion above, it is apparent that rape myths are real and to some extent has lead to victimization of the victim. The efforts made by the feminist activists have to some degree resulted in refuting laying blame on victim and promoted the ‘don’t rape message’. The society at large need to take responsibility in negotiating the underlying issues those enmesh with everyday life and agitate for a widespread cultural change. List of References Beale, D., 2013. The Role of Media in Rape Cases in the United States. [online] Available at : < https://onlineacademiccommunity.uvic.ca/dylanbeale [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Barnett, S, JF., 2013. SlutWalk Toronto. [Online] Available at http://www.slutwalktoronto.com/about/how [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Ervin, J., 2009. What is Rape? [Online] Available at: [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Hamlin, J., 2005. List of Rape Myths: Sociology of Rape, University of Minnesota Duluth. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Kahlor, L, A,. & Morrison, D., 2007. Television Viewing and Rape Myth Acceptance among College Women. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 18 December 2013]. McNicol, L, M., 2012. SlutWalk is ‘kind of like feminism’: A Critical Reading of Canadian Mainstream News Coverage of SlutWalk. [Online] Available at [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Merhab, B., & Lillebuen, S., 2013. Hinch Contempt Charge in Meagher Case. [Online] Available at [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Tedeschi, S., 2013. We Must Face up to Our Own Rape Culture. [Online] Available at: [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Sarahoverton. 2013. Critical Perspectives on the SlutWalk Debates. [Oline] Available at: < http://upperclassmonroe.blogs.wm.edu/2013/08/14/critical-perspectives-on-the-slutwalk-debate/> [Accessed 18 December 2013]. Read More