On Rape Culture and the Steubenville Trials
Written by: Julian Rose - Vidette blogger & ISU student
Trigger warning: rape and sexual abuse
Over spring break, my father and I were walking to brunch and happened to pass a film crew in our neighborhood. As usual, we smiled and said hello to everyone. It’s the polite thing to do. One of them said hi back to my father, who was a few paces ahead with the dog, and when I followed suit and greeted him, he replied, “Oh wow, hello, you’re absolutely beautiful, damn.” And it made me uncomfortable. And my dad didn’t understand why.
“You told me you’re about to go make out with strangers on St Patrick’s Day and have people buy you drinks, but you’re not okay with some guy calling you beautiful?”
For a moment, I almost felt like I was actually in the wrong for feeling uncomfortable. That it was silly of me to avoid the same film set while walking to catch the bus to my friends, and that I didn’t need to explain to him WHY I automatically wanted to walk faster after the random man had said those things to me. But then I realized that no, it’s not that I was too quick to jump to conclusions. He doesn’t understand why it made me uncomfortable, and he never will, because it doesn’t happen to him. And that’s what hurts the most — that my father, who claims to always be there for me, may never fully understand why his daughter never feels safe, simply because she is a woman, especially because she is a small woman.
Don’t get me wrong -- my father is a wonderful man, and my best friend. He is a self-proclaimed feminist, and has been a great supporter and advocate to the cause since marrying his wife, a well-known gynecological surgeon and public health figure. And yet, he didn’t understand how a random man commenting on my appearance, unprompted, could make me uncomfortable.
The worst part of all of this was that it happened right as the Steubenville rape trial was occurring. In fact, this happened the day before the verdict was delivered.
For those unfamiliar, this trial surrounded two boys in Steubenville, Ohio, who were convicted of raping and kidnapping a 16-year-old girl. The girl was drugged, kidnapped, and gang raped by two high school football players of the same age, who then described the acts in a 12 minute video. This video was obtained by the hacktivist group Anonymous and then distributed online, causing rightful outrage against the two boys and sparking the local police force to charge them. As the nation watched these two boys stand trial for what they did, the world was buzzing with support; unfortunately, not all of it was for the victim, who still remains nameless and protected by the law.
On news stations, news websites, and even all over Facebook and Twitter, there were cries of outrage as the boys were convicted of the crimes and sentenced to 1-2 years. People didn’t understand why they were being punished for this. Even on CNN, which is usually one of the more self-aware news channels, reporters were focusing on the formerly promising lives of the two football players, and how their futures had been shattered. There were blatant threats to the victim, named Jane Doe due to her anonymity, and arrests were made for some of the more serious threats. One of the boys’ attorneys even went on Piers Morgan to say that he was going to file for an appeal, stating that his client’s brain isn’t fully formed and therefore he is unable to fully comprehend his actions and their consequences.
I hope you had to do the same double-take at that statement that I had to while I was watching that segment. Yes, the attorney, a grown-ass man who practices law and has won cases, believes his client, although guilty, should not be charged and should not have to serve his measly sentencing of a year in a juvenile detention center, because his brain is not functional enough to know that touching a woman who is not able to say “no” or “stop”, is not okay. What sort of logic is that? Its not that his brain isn’t fully formed; its that no one has begun to teach men that it is not okay to rape, and that silence is not a form of consent.
Here’s the thing: with all of the people who are still standing behind these two boys, it is clear that this message is not being said. If you are not aware, this is the core of rape culture. Rape culture is defined as an environment where rape and sexual violence is common, accepted, and normalized. Rape culture is continued through misogynistic and degrading language towards women, objectification and hyper-sexualization of women’s bodies, and glorification of sexual violence. All of these components create a society that casts aside women’s safety and rights, and continues to hold women in a lower position.
Even though you may not be a direct victim of sexual violence, every woman is affected by rape culture. By allowing the language to continue, trivializing sexual assault, allowing sexual harassment to happen or sexually harassing women yourself, making jokes about sexual violence or assault, or defining manhood as being “dominant” or “assertive”, saying that silence or unconsciousness is a form of consent, and blaming the victim (including using their actions or what they were wearing as a reason for their rape), you are allowing rape culture to continue. By doing any of these things, you are allowing rape to be normalized, to be accepted as something that is common and tolerable in this society. By teaching women to not get raped instead of teaching men not to rape, you are letting the cycle of rape culture continue. This is not a safe world for anyone.
I’ve told you all in a previous post that I’m a statistics nerd, so here are a few for you from RAINN (Rape, Abust, & Incest National Network):
• One out of every six women in the US has been the victim of rape
• Every two minutes, someone in the US is sexually assaulted
• 54% of sexual assaults are not reported to police or any authoritative figure
• 97% of rapists never are convicted, and never spend a day in jail
And while not all men rape and not all women have been raped, that is not an excuse to tolerate these behaviors. Sexual assault is a serious matter, and trivializing it or standing up for those who do it is not okay. By doing this, you are telling sexual assault victims that their life-ruining experience is not valid. No one has the right to dictate that. No one has the right to tell someone their experience with sexual violence is not legitimate, and that they need to “suck it up” or “get over it”. It is not that simple. It is never that simple. If you still don’t understand why this trial is so important, or why rape culture needs to end, I encourage you to look at the testimonies of sexual assault victims.
Although I am fortunate enough to have never been raped, I have many friends who have been, and I empathize with them and support them in any way I can. I have, however, been the victim of sexual assault and sexual harassment. Because of my experiences, I don’t feel safe walking through the streets of Chicago, my home, at night. I spend money I don’t have on cabs because I remember some of the more terrifying experiences I’ve had on public transit. I only walk in well-lit areas, and I have my mace in my clenched fist, ready to use. I’ve learned to bite my tongue when I am catcalled on the street, and to bite it even harder when I am then called “cold” or “bitch” (among much nastier names) when I do not respond. I have taken martial arts classes to learn how to defend myself and my friends, and I have educated the males in my life as to why all of this is necessary because of the society we live in. Rape culture affects everyone, not just the victim of sexual assault. So please, please, PLEASE, do your part to make this world safer for everyone you know.
No means no. Silence means no. Inability to speak means no. Anything but a verbal “yes” means no, and that is final.