Post Classifieds
Sexual assault is not a joking matter
By Angelica Rodriguez
On November 7, 2012
It seems as though a lot of people have been trying to make a joke out of rape lately.
Politicians are trying to redefine it, comedians are trying to trivialize it, and if anyone out there follows
the @BuffStateProbz Twitter account, they'll see the term being bandied about on campus by students
and, allegedly, even teachers. Yes, teachers.
Rape seems like a big joke to everyone - everyone but an actual rape survivor.
Before I go any further, here are some statistics to put this into perspective. According to information
found on the website for the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network, there are over 200,000 cases
of sexual assault per year. Over half of them (54 percent) are never reported to police.
About two-thirds of assaults are perpetrated by someone the survivor knew and trusted - 38 percent
of them by a friend or acquaintance. Kind of makes the whole "man in a dark alley" stereotype seem
unlikely, doesn't it?
Eighty percent of those who are raped or sexually assaulted are under the age of 30. Native American
and Alaskan women are more likely than any other group to be sexually assaulted.
Though most survivors are women - 1 in 6 American women have been targeted - let's not forget that
men can be assaulted as well. 1 in 33 American men have experienced an attempted or completed rape,
and they face the added pressure of social stigma based on views of masculinity in our culture. Because
of this, their cases go largely unreported.
Effects of sexual assault include post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, eating disorders, repeated
flashbacks, pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections including HIV/AIDS. If left untreated and
without anywhere to turn, a victim could take desperate measures, including taking his or her own life.
All of this paints a grim picture for anyone with higher thought processes, but every now and then I
hear and see otherwise (I hope) decent people refer to rape as something minor and uncommon.
Republican politicians are the biggest culprits of this. Just last week John Koster, a GOP congressional
candidate in Washington state, referred to it as "the rape thing." Before him, it was Indiana Senate
candidate Richard Mourdock talking about how pregnancy by rape is "God's will." And we can't forget
Todd Akin and his strides to determine "legitimate rape" as a method of birth control. That's certainly
something I never read about in bio or health class.
It doesn't stop there. Comedian Daniel Tosh came under fire this summer for joking about how funny
it'd be if a female member of the audience were "raped by five guys."
Young men I know and otherwise like sometimes slip up and make jokes about it that come across as
threatening, and young women laugh along without realizing how problematic it is. And if someone
speaks up about it, like that female audience member, they're essentially told to shut up, sit back and
enjoy it. It's just a joke.
This is not a joke. And joking like that is never okay.
It's hard to avoid the topic when so many people are joking about it, but it's important to know how to
handle the issue.
For starters, you can take yourself out of the problem. Don't vote for politicians who think they can
redefine something hundreds of thousands of people have lived through every year. That's not in the
best interests of the public, whom they're supposed to be serving.
If you hear someone making a joke, speak up. Say something like, "Hey, I don't get why that's so
funny," or, "Hey, do you mind not saying stuff like that around me?"
Your friends or acquaintances might find you slightly humorless, but if you at least try to engage them
in a conversation about why the joke is so harmful, they might just come around. Or at least they'll stop
talking about it around you. If they don't, perhaps reconsider your friendship.
I know it seems extreme, but all it takes it one word or sentence. Think about it.
If you're the one making the joke, well, I hate to break it to you, but you're not clever. Stop. Think
about what you're really trying to say.
I know it's 2012 and comedy's supposed to be "edgy" and "shocking," but there comes a point when
shock value isn't so great, and you come off more as a jerk than a genius. If you really have to joke
about it, learn from comedians like George Carlin and Wanda Sykes, who have made some pretty good
comments about rape without coming across as threatening or misogynist.
And please, try to remember that rape isn't about sexual desire. It's about power, over both men and
women. A drunk girl wearing a short skirt wasn't "asking for it" any more than a guy in jeans and a
button-down was. Making that assumption is saying that we are somehow unable to control ourselves,
especially men (who are more likely to perpetrate a sex crime).
How about it, guys? Do you like being told you have no control over your body, that you're not smart
enough to keep it in your pants?
I didn't think so.
Angelica Rodriguez can be reached by email at rodriguez.record@gmail.com.
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