I'm sorry it makes some people uncomfotable

[liberal_at_heart]

but we have a duty to talk about rape. While I feel for those who feel it is sexist, the people I truly feel for are those women out there who are too ashamed to tell someone they have been raped, too ashamed to press charges because she is afraid she will be accused of lying or that somehow it is her fault. When Akin said those horrible things, I saw rape victims come out of the shadows and come on to talk shows sharing their stories. It was great to see. I don't know about the other women on this board but I would never accuse every man of being a rapist. If you are courageous enough to stand up for women then I applaud you. There are great men out there who are courageous. My husband has witnessed the aftermath of two rapes. He took them to the hospital. He saw the devastation it caused. It changed him forever. There are countless other men out there who do support women and I applaud you. But we do have to speak up and point out the one who do think that somehow it is the woman's fault or that rape is no big deal or that rape is just another form of conception or that she should be forced to have the baby regardless of how she got pregnant.

[no_hypocrisy]

1. "Against Our Will" by Susan Brownmiller, 1971

http://www.susanbrownmiller.com/susanbrownmiller/html/against_our_will.html

I read this book years ago and have kept it in my library for reference.

It is a seminal piece of research, history, and sociology of rape in the U.S. and other countries.

-snip-

The dim perception that had entered prehistoric woman's consciousness must have had an equal but opposite reaction in the mind of her male assailant. For if the first rape was an unexpected battle founded on the first woman's refusal, the second rape was indubitably planned. Indeed, one of the earliest forms of male bonding must have been the gang rape of one woman by a band of marauding men. This accomplished, rape became not only a male prerogative, but man's basic weapon of force against woman, the principal agent of his will and her fear. His forcible entry into her body, despite her physical protestations and struggle, became the vehicle of his victorious conquest over her being, the ultimate test of his superior strength, the triumph of his manhood.

Man's discovery that his genitalia could serve as a weapon to prehistoric times, along with the use of fire and the first crude stone axe. From prehistoric times to the present, I believe, rape has played a critical function. It is nothing more or less than a conscious process of intimidation by which all men keep all women in a state of fear.

[bemildred]

2. Absolutely, we men have a responsibility to treat women with dignity and respect.

If you want a better world, you have to walk that walk and talk that talk.

[G_j]

3. rape has always been a form of oppression,

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021192512
http://www.brissc.org.au/resources/for/for_12.html

The politics of rape

Rape is one violent form of oppression and is a mechanism by which individuals or groups gain, express and maintain their dominance and power over others. This is evident when rape is used as a tool of war, when men are raped in jail, or when rape occurs on the basis of someone's race, age, ability or sexuality. Rape is about the use and abuse of power to intimidate, degrade or control others with less status. The fact that women and children are raped more often than men is a manifestation of lesser power and inferior status in society.

Structural and institutional powers and societal beliefs maintain a culture where women have less power and status. Power imbalance or discrimination is also practised on the grounds of race, class, sexuality, age and ability. Sexual violence for women then, is not only an extension of sexism, but often exists in conjunction with these other forms of oppression.

As feminists, we do not believe that rape is inevitable, but rather that rape and other forms of men's violence are a result of learned attitudes and behaviours which are reinforced by a society that often defines manhood or masculinity through domination. Too many men make choices to exert power and control over others by using sexual violence. Men who rape CHOOSE to rape and must always be held accountable for their actions. Other men can and do choose non-violence.

Men who rape are behaving according to a belief system which says they have the right to own, dominate and punish women and to use rape to control women. But where would such a belief system come from? How does it show itself in everyday life?

Recent research shows that approximately one third of young men believe it is OK to force a young woman to have sex if she has "led him on". In other words they believe they have the right to use violence to make a girl do what they want, regardless of that girl's wishes, rights or needs.

..more..