Rape is okay, according to a bunch of completely ignorant students. So you know that’s cool then.

The "No Rape" Ducky
I got doing the "Slut Walk" in Houston

I always read “Winning at Everything” (an awesome website, btw), and there was a “Losing at Sex Education” that showed a poll called “When Is Rape Okay?” that was conducted by a Jacqueline Goodchilds with high school students.  According to the poll, students (both male and female) agreed that rape was okay in certain situations, especially if “He is so turned on he thinks he can’t stop?,” “She is going to and then changes her mind?,” “She gets him sexually excited?,” or “They have dated for a long time?”  In those cases, 21 to 42 percent of women said it was okay.  Thirty-nine to 54 percent of men said it was okay.  (Although, again, these are high school students, so many we shouldn’t call them women and men…)  

Well, I read that and thought, “Nah, that can’t be right! Why the hell would a woman agree that rape was peachy keen okay with her?”  So I did research. 

Yes, this was a real study, and this was for real.  It was, however, done in 1978.  

Sadly, though, I’m not sure that really changes much.  According to the Center for Women and Families, 1 out of 6 women have been raped or been victims of attempted rape.  Of the women who were raped, 38% were under the age of 18.  Only 60% of rapes were reported to the police.  Over 70% of the rapes were not by strangers. (Please keep in mind those are only “rape” stats…sexual assault is a whole different category…but more on that in a future blog on defining rape…)

I think we need to work with women first.  If women are excusing rape, then how can we expect men to acknowledge that it’s a problem?  Women need to be together on this.  They need to agree.  Rape is *never* okay.  We cannot turn a blind eye to those who seem to think that it’s okay, that they deserve it, or that they somehow brought it onto themselves.  We need to increase reports to the police, increase our support of victims to make them into survivors and not victims, and then, and only then, can we actually do something about stopping rape.  Until then, we’re part of the society that allows it instead of actively condemns it.  So spread the word and make it clear: Rape is rape, and rape is not okay.