Many people don’t realize that men are also victims of sexual assault and rape. This CNN article profiles two men’s stories. One in six men report sexually abusive relationships, according to research presented in the article.
Part of a RAINN campaign to raise knowledge about the experiences of and resources for both men and women rape survivors.
[youtube]https://youtu.be/ZGnFjF0ts4w[/youtube]
At the end of this video, I was speechless. To think that the people that are supposed to protect you and look out for your best interest could dismiss you so easily is frighting. More and more, I hear stories on the news or see stories online about women not reporting sexual assault. Statistics are getting higher and higher everyday of rape and harassment and how the culture of rape is growing. This discussion of women that are involved has to change as well; It can not longer be about “what she was wearing” or “how much did she have to drink.” What kind of message does that send to young girls and even to young boys??
To watch this young women tell others, that have been sexually assaulted, to “not have high expectations,” of the justice system is horrifyingly sad; it highlights how truly broken it is. We need to be the change for all the young girls in the future. We need to change it for the women getting sexually assaulted at this very moment. Lets change it so we never have to hear “The guy didn’t look like a creep,” and know that our claims are being categorized as insignificant. Lets change it so we can feel safe and valued.
As I look through my Facebook news feed yesterday and today one of the popular things I am seeing is the Meghan Trainor video. Trainor has a song out now called “Dear Future Husband.” Within this song she is telling her “future husband” how to treat her right just by following a few simple things, like making sure that he gives her flowers every anniversary. The song goes on just listing things that he should follow so he can treat her like a lady. To me though she was a little demanding with all the things she wants just so that her future husband can treat her like a lady. Yeah it would be nice for those things but all females want their future husbands to treat them right in their own way. I also think that the way she is dressed and dancing shows a little to “sexy” for mass media. I thought that some of the outfits that she had on were low cut and tight which could be shown to be sexy during the music video. Also with this video it can be a little sexist because you have a woman her asking things to be treated right by her future husband but what about the men? They are also need to be treated right by his wife, so where is his video?
Here’s an interesting example of a man working in a very visible (but anonymous until now) way to speak out against rape. Eric Lostutter revealed that he was the member of Anonymous who helped to raise national attention about the rape of a 16-year-old girl in Steubenville, OH by outting some of the members of the football team who had posted videos of and tweeted about the rape.
From the article:
… the man behind the mask is not who you’d (or I guess who I’d) expect him to be. Lostutter, who gave an interview to Mother Jones on Thursday, lives in Kentucky, seems to be part good ol’ boy and part bro. The 26-year-old is a cybersecurity consultant who likes motorcycle riding, Bud-drinking, flag-flying, and turkey hunting. He’s also an amateur rapper who goes by the name Shadow.
This is a case that men are an important ally in the fight against rape, while also raising some important ethical questions regarding privacy and our justice system.
Facebook has allowed pages and posts that celebrate assaulting women. For example, from the article:
“Groups and images with allegedly humorous titles like “Raping a Pregnant B***h and Telling Your Friends You Had a Threesome” have always been only a click away and, under Facebook’s content policy until now, stood a better chance of surviving moderator review than photos of breastfeeding babies did.”
Click here for a 2010 series of articles from NPR about campus rape, including the one referenced in the audio lecture about the “serial predator” study.
This is the story referenced in the online lecture of the 3 VA students and their experiences with honor board courts after reporting sexual assaults at UVA, William & Mary, and Georgetown University.
This article explains the new law just signed by Obama in March 2013.
Here is the Rolling Stone article referenced in the audio lecture about a culture of denial and cover-up of rampant sexual assault within the military.
Here is the article referenced in the audio lecture about the hearings held in the senate in March, 2013.