YES BECAUSE IF WE FOCUS ON OTHER FAR AWAY PLACES THEN WE DON’T HAVE TO CONFRONT THE REALITY OF THE WAY WE VIEW SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE WEST

I don’t think you fully understand what the term “rape culture” means–it doesn’t mean society as a whole thinks rape is a super fucking great time. It’s the normalization of rape. It’s telling women to expect rape when they go out by themselves at night. It’s telling women not to let themselves get “too drunk”, while all of the men around them are drinking heavily. It’s teaching women how *not* to get raped. It’s also blaming rape survivors for their own violation and justifying rapists’ actions. It’s the fucking Steubenville, Ohio rape case and CNN reporters lamenting the high school rapists’ convictions because they have good grades and are “talented”, while expressing no concern for the 16 year old victim.

“When considering different approaches to understanding the phenomenon of rape culture, both empirical, post-positivist theories and critical theories show that women are often blamed for sexual assault based on a variety of factors, particularly alcohol use. In multiple empirical studies, when participants were asked to rate hypothetical scenarios of sexual assault on the amount the victim was at fault, female rape victims who had consumed alcohol were considered more blameworthy than victims who were sober (Norris & Cubbins, 1992; Richardson & Campbell, 1982; Sims, Noel, & Maisto, 2007). Conversely, when asked to rate sexual offenders, participants were less likely to blame perpetrators for sexually aggressive behavior if they had consumed alcohol (Richardson & Campbell, 1982; Wild, Graham, & Rehm, 1998). In situations where both the rapist and the victim were intoxicated, the assault was less likely to be considered rape (Untied, Orchowski, Mastroleo, & Gidycz, 2012).”



And this is only research examining the role of alcohol in sexual assault cases, it doesn’t even begin to look at victim sexual history, clothing, or relationship with the perpetrator.

So please, don’t try and derail discussions about the legitimate problems with the way the West treats sexual assault and keep your fallacies out of here.