My Response to a Rape Culture Video
On Friday, the Facebook page, Attn, posted a video about the infamous “rape culture” that plagues all women everywhere.
After watching this video, I have determined, through the use of logic and reason, that this video is 95% trash.
To start, let me say that rape is evil. Every remotely decent human should agree with this statement. Rape = bad.
Acts of sexual assault are real; rape culture is not. To state that all women everywhere are all victims of rape culture brought on by all men everywhere is misleading, untrue, and a disservice to the individulals who actually are victims of sexual assault.
Here are my follow up thoughts on the video in no particular order:
1) The video conveniently didn’t mention that men can also be victims of sexual assault.
2) Walking with one earbud out to stay alert to one’s surroundings is just wise life advice. One is more likely to be struck by a moving vehicle, bicyclist, or random skateboarder than they are to be sexually assaulted while walking. Given such risks, it is wise to remain alert to one’s surroundings.
3) I found the woman with the hijab to be particularly intriguing. For some reason, she didn’t mention that women in heavily Islamic or Sharia Law controlled areas are treated terribly, as are homosexuals in those same areas. I bet those women know a thing or two about actual oppression and being taken advantage of, the ones where group rape is acceptable, where they can’t vote, can’t drive, have very few rights, and where honor killings are encouraged.
4) I don’t believe rape culture is real. I believe it’s on the same field as institutional racism. Yes, there are individual racists. But I have not seen any evidence to support there being some big, ambiguous institutional racist monster out in the ether somewhere.
5) Following that same line of thought, show me evidence and the individual who is pro-sexual assault and I will protest against them and call out their bad behavior. Show me the parents who are teaching their children that sexual assault is an encouraged or even an acceptable thing to do to another person, and I will protest against them and call out their bad behavior as well.
To pretend that all it takes to prevent rape is to simply teach young boys that rape isn’t an option is idiotic. I have yet to find a family explicitly teaching their children that rape is an acceptable behavior. Also, women are capable of sexual assault and rape, too. It isn’t something only men are capable of.
Yes, there are individual rapists and sexual assailants. But to blame all men everywhere for victimizing all women everywhere and say that all men everywhere are potential rapists is asinine and unfair to all decent men everywhere who haven’t had any bad behavior or evidence to support such an accusation.
6) Personally, I believe that rapists should either be killed or castrated.
7) Not walking alone at night, down an alleyway, or upstairs if being chased are all examples of good life advice for everyone to follow in more contexts than just women being sexually assaulted.
8) It’s second nature for all humans to alter their behavior to minimize risk. It’s connected to that “common sense” muscle we should all have. Altering one’s behavior to minimize risk isn’t something that only women do because of the risk of sexual assault. Last time I checked, most people wear seat belts while driving to minimize the risk of being hurt in an accident.
To sum it up, rape is an evil act, no question there. We are all responsible for our choices, and all of our choices have consequences. Show me evidence of an individual who is pro-rape and I will stand against them; show me a family who are teaching their kids that rape is acceptable and I will stand against them as well. However, we need evidence, not just unfounded accusations and claims to fit what makes us feel validated.