No means no

No means no

Saturday 10 September 2016

Rape… against the law, but it still happens


Two 12-year-old boys have been charged over the alleged assault and rape of a six-year-old girl at a primary school on Sydney's northern beaches.” 1 September 2016
These boys have been released on bail, but because they are children their jail won’t make a difference to what they did.

The comments said: ‘I. Hope. Somebody. Rapes. You. Today. :).’” 7 September 2016
Olivia Nuzzi, Washington reporter for The Daily Beast, had claimed that the Republican Krawitz had harassed her since 2015, and his latest comments happened very recently. No court case, but Olivia should be proud with how women take what she did to heart – publicise him.

Coked-up’ British stockbroker Daniel Green testified in court that he had trouble having sex with a woman because of the size of his penis during a cocaine and champagne-fuelled office party.” 9 September 2016
The woman he raped had gotten drunk and was asleep under her desk when he crawled on top of her. In court, he tried to say that he had difficulty because of the size of his penis. He seemed to have ignored the victim saying “no”!

The publishing group Pearson has come under fire in South Africa after one of its school textbooks suggested a rape victim was at fault for the crime.” 9 September 2016
Activity 9, the ‘Give Advice’ section in this book said “List two ways which Angie’s behaviour led to sexual intercourse.” This ‘education’ hasn’t changed the rape, it increased the rates. South Africa has the highest rape in the world. Ben Pearson, the director of policy at ActionAid International, said in his Twitter post that schoolchildren had to blame the female in order to pass the test.

A doctor and a hospital attendant have been arrested for the alleged rape of a woman who was being treated at a top hospital in western India, a police officer said Friday.” 10 September 2016
In a ‘top hospital’ security appears to support the patients, but this is not the first time that patients in Indian hospitals have said they were raped. Last year 34,000 rapes were reported, but many more were not reported.

 A Canadian federal judge is facing possible removal for asking the accuser in a 2014 rape trial: ‘Why couldn’t you just keep your knees together?’” 10 September 2016
Camp had already acquitted the man accused of rape after he had decided the testimony was more credible. He even said to the woman “Why couldn’t you just keep your knees together?” What the hell was he thinking??

“…the victim was sitting in the bus with other students when the accused sneaked up to her and touched her breasts. He then put his hand under her skirt and penetrated her 'digitally' using his fingers.” 10 September 2016
This man was released with a suspended sentence. Why on earth would court do that? Why wouldn’t court listen to the girl who had been assaulted?

Thank goodness that the UK city trader was jailed: A City trader has been jailed for six years for raping a woman as she attempted to sleep under her desk after an office party.” How many other court cases will go ahead with a rape victim? How many courts will find the real accused guilty? WHY ISN’T THIS HAPPENING??

How can we educate boys and men against rape? We have many DV organisations – not government-supported – which tell us how. We have the NASAV (National Association of Services Against Sexual Violence) which tell us how. 

The pdf file (available online) from Dr Patricia Weiser Easteal, Senior Criminologist Australian Institute of Criminology, says: “Rape is not a sexual act. Rape is an act of violence which uses sex as a weapon.” Do we all agree with this? We should! Rape is an act of violence… EVERY man MUST know this!

This paper lists too many “myths” which men – and women - still believe in”

Myth: Rape requires physical force
Myth: Rape requires physical resistance by the victim
Myth: Rape requires a weapon
Myth: Rape is a sexual act
Myth: Since rape is primarily a sexual act, the victim in some way may precipitate the offence through arousing the male in some provocative manner
Myth: Since rape is provoked by a female, it is commonly a spontaneous act
Myth: Aboriginal women (or Afro-American women in the USA) are more highly sexed than 'white' women and, therefore, are always willing to have sex; thus they precipitate rape by their sexual behaviour

Stupid. Real. Myths. Read this to find out why!

In 1993 Walker wrote that women would not report a rape by a person she knew because she was afraid by what police would think. This happened far too many years in the past – I certainly thought that in 1973 when I was raped by five “friends”. Why should I have reported it to police? Why did I stay there? Why did I say it was rape when I didn’t even leave? Yadda yadda yadda… Yes, it was definitely rape. If I had reported the rape, and if it had been treated legitimately, I should have had justice from that event. Unfortunately, too many women who do take their rape to court don’t have justice even today. Too many police or court judges just don’t believe women. Even today.

Camp, a federal judge in Canada, is – hopefully – being treated the way he should be now. He should be fired. He should be held responsible for his stupidity, the acquittal of the man who actually did rape.

NO police person, NO judge, should disbelieve women who complain about rape. Every rape case should be listened to. Every woman who complains should be believed before the trial. Every man who raped should not be allowed to say that his future life is in trouble from his ‘20 minutes’.

Trouble is, I don’t believe that will happen.

At least, not this decade.