culture



noun cul·ture \ˈkəl-chər\

: the beliefs, customs, arts, etc., of a particular society, group, place, or time

: a particular society that has its own beliefs, ways of life, art, etc.

: a way of thinking, behaving, or working that exists in a place or organization (such as a business)





Rape Culture seems to be the one thing that systematically circumvents the definition of what a culture actually is. What beliefs and customs could possibly exist in rape that could derive a culture? It’s true that rapists will universally have disgusting beliefs that they’ve convinced themselves make their actions okay - but that’s like saying we live in a PTSD culture just simply because it exists because of a sickness.

It’s almost as if the term rape culture is deemed necessary just because people have deluded themselves into thinking committing rape is okay if you can justify it, or more so because rape exists at all. Never mind that statistics clearly show that sexual assault is on a sharp decline especially in the last 2 decades. Somehow, sheltered college students with a social science major and Tumblrites have convinced society that rape culture is a worse problem than climate change.

While we’re living in a rape culture, here’s a list of other cultures I propose we announce we’re living in as well: Banana Wasting Culture, Advanced Chameleon Dressing Culture, Corrugated Box Culture, Nylon Acoustic Guitar String Culture, Dog Snack Baking Culture, and even Final Fantasy Blog Culture. These are things that exist, that some people engage in, without it actually being a way of life, and/or a set of customs; but still somehow are a culture because I hate the dictionary and wish it would conform to the way I want it to so I can make a horrible problem seem way more widespread than it actually is! I’m not quite sure that advanced chameleon dressing exists though, much less novice or intermediate. It’s probably high time we start, though.

Oh, also - isn’t funny that the people who love to talk about “Rape Culture” in this country never seem to be the ones who want to decry chronic physical and sexual abuse of women in Middle Eastern countries, where it actually IS a part of their culture?