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Rape is All too Common
“What were you wearing?," people seem to always need to know. When you’re dealing
with rape it is insignificant why or how it happened. It is insignificant what the victim was
wearing or how much he or she had to drink. Why do these things matter? Why do these
things make me unreliable? Why do victims question whether it was their fault or the
abusers fault? Why isn’t one ‘no’ enough? While some people think an individual is solely
responsible for rape, it’s all too common for us not to question if that’s true or not. The
abundance of rape is a result of our culture, which involves America’s history, the negative
treatment of women, and the subconscious bias against victims.
It’s time to step away from focusing on the rapes themselves and focus on why so many
are happening; look at the symptom not the disease. Up until the beginning of 2013, the
FBI acknowledged rape as strictly vaginal penetration against one’s will. It is impeccable
that this was the only thing that was considered rape. Striping someone of his or her
control and privacy, no matter how big or small the event might seem it still is mentally
damaging. In a document addressing the FBI’s implementation of the change in definition
it is clearly explained what the definition now is compared to what it was only a year and a
half ago. The old definition was, “‘The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against
her will’ Many agencies interpreted this definition as excluding a long list of sex offenses
that are criminal in most jurisdictions, such as offenses involving oral or anal penetration,
penetration with objects, and rapes of males" (FBI 1). Later explained, the new summary
definition of rape, “Penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body
part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without the consent of
the victim" (FBI 2) In other words, if someone feels coerced into doing something, even if
they’re not forced, it’s still rape. Any time anyone is forced to have any sexual experience,
even if it’s not sex, it’s still rape. They are not just words on a paper; this is a cultural issue
that needs handling and it’s a lot more common than most people think. One out of five
women have been the victims of attempted or completed rape. Not only are there are lots
