As a society, we must recognize the barriers that men face when choosing whether to speak out about sexual assault. When these men do choose to come forward, it is important that male survivors, be believed and supported by those around them and allowed to make their own decisions about what courses of action to take. There are many reasons that male victims do not come forward and report being raped, but perhaps the biggest reason for many males is the fear of being perceived as homosexual. Sexual assault is a violent crime that affects heterosexual men as well as gay and bisexuals. Just as it affects the female gender, so does it affect the male gender.
For healing to occur, we need to ask ourselves: are we ready as a society to listen to
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Little support groups can also be created, or movements be created for both men and women. Statistically, millions of men in the United States have been victims of rape. As of 1998, 2.78 million men in the US have been victims of attempted or completed rape. About 3% of American men have experienced an attempted or complete rape in their life time. One out of every 10 rape victims are men. The emotional consequence of delaying recovery from sexual assault in a man can take out to every area of a survivor’s life and the lives of those in his community. Men who do not get help risk exposure to greater physical health issues, some of which include substance abuse, chronic health conditions, societal ideation and social dysfunction, just to name a few. In discussing sexual assault, it is critically important to acknowledge male privilege and a greater prevalence of sexual abuse and assault amongst women. If progress is to be made, against all forms of sexual assault, we must recognize that men are equally victims of sexual violence in high numbers and thus, they need support too to be able to speak out rather than stay in silence and feel low about themselves and what the society will think of them if they eventually speak out. Giving a helping hand and a listening ear to men who have been or who are stigmatized, can have positive impact for people of all gender identities and expressions and thus a healthier life can be guaranteed for our children, family members, friends, co-workers just to name a few. It is understood that men are the highest gender who perpetrate sexual assault on women, but rather than
According to the authors of “Enhancing Care and Advocacy for Sexual Assault Survivors on Canadian Campuses”, “Sexual assault has immediate and long-term health consequences for victims including suicide, HIV infection, depression, and social isolation,” (Quinlan, Clarke, and Miller). Another common side effect these victims face is post-traumatic stress disorder. Someone experiencing PTSD may have random outburst of anger, have trouble concentrating on day to day tasks, or may even have flashbacks of their attack. These consequences make it hard for victims to get back into the normal routine of everyday life (“Effects of Sexual Assault”). In a case at Amherst College a young women named Angie Epifano faced many of these consequences after she was raped by an acquaintance in one of the college’s dormitories. While immediately choosing to ignore what had happened to her Epifano soon became an emotional wreck. Before the attack Epifano had believed herself to be an extremely strong and independent individual. In an article done on Epifano’s story she stated “Everything I had believed myself to be was gone in 30 minutes,” (Epifano). Sexual assault takes away a piece of someone. With their hopes and dreams clouded by the tragedy they have endured, victims face a lifetime of
Women have a bigger chance of being rape victims than men. A researcher of Native American rape victims, Julian Brave NoiseCat, has found proof that women of other ethnicities have a high risk of being raped, but not as much as
In what is sure to be a very solemn matter for all American students and their families across the country , in January 2013 , President Obama, the office of the Vice President and the White House Council on Women and Girls converged and issued a renewed call to action against rape and sexual assault report which analyzes the most recent reliable data about this issue and identifies who are the most in peril victims of this malefaction, investigates the costs of this violence both for victims and communities , and describes the replication very often inadequate of the US malefactor equity system.
As it is in the case of the majority of violent crimes, (Davies and Rogers, 2006) perpetrators of violent crimes, and especially sexual assault related crimes exert additional force by threatening the victim or their families. Male victims also must contend with an additional sense of shame and embarrassment in being identified with a crime that has been typically portrayed in the media as happening to women. This places men at a disadvantage in the reporting process, because their safety and the safety of others is compromised further if the crime is not reported. (Messerschmitt, 2009)
Sexual assault is defined as any type of sexual contact or behavior that occurs without the explicit consent of the recipient. Falling under the definition of sexual assault are sexual activities as forced sexual intercourse, forcible sodomy, child molestation, incest, fondling, and In the United States 80% of sexual assault victims are under the age of 30. Of that 80%, 44% are under the age of 18 (RAINN, 2016). That leaves 36% of victims between the ages of 18 and 30. These percentages become even more alarming when that 80% is of about 293,000 victims of secual assualt each year (RAINN, 2016). It is estimated that 1 in every 6 women in the US has been or will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime. The risks of sexual assault increase on college campuses. Women ages 18-24 who are enrolled in college are 3 times more likely than women in general to suffer from sexual violence (RAINN, 2016). One would think that with all these women being sexually assaulted, one would hear more about it, or perhaps the police stations would constantly be busy. This is not the case. Sexual assault is one of the most unreported crimes, with 68% still being left unreported (RAINN, 2016). This could be because of every 100 rapists, only 2 will spend a day in jail. Of the 32 out of 100 that would be reported, only 7 are referred to an arrest (RAINN, 2016). Why would men or women want to report sexual assault when the system that is supposed to protect them fails so often, and why does this system continue to fail?
Rape until 2012 was defined as “The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.” It was severely lacking was only updated by the Federal Bureau of Instigation in 2012. It left out an entire section of rape that can be committed which is man being the rape victim. This lead to misclassification of rape of males for years. So even the statistics used till 2014 were underwhelming and inaccurate when it was related to male rape or sexual assault. Rape in the United States is now defined by the Department of Justice as “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.” Male Rape or men being the sexual assault victims are rarely ever the subject of a dialogue when Sexual Assault is the topic being discussed because rape is generally seen as a heterosexual highly sexed male attack on vulnerable, attractively dressed female victim. Most rapists have alternative outlets for sexual gratification, many take little notice of their victim 's physical attributes, and some may experience sexual dysfunction during the assault.
In this source it elaborates on how men are being rape just as much as women are. Even though it seems more common for only women to be rape both genders are affected. This source supports my claim that rape needs to be taken more seriously. I used this source to support my claims.
The statistics clearly show a group of people who’re affected by the heinous acts of sexual assault. Everyone knows that sexual assault isn’t a topic that’s on the top of the list to talk about; people usually even try to go as far as to hide it or to cover it up. Though, it’s clear for certain; covering something up doesn’t make it alright – It won’t make it go away and the problem is still there. For that exact fact, it is the very reason that sexual assault is something that needs to be brought to the
Sexual assault is defined as a type of behaviour that occurs without explicit consent from the recipient and under sexual assault come various categories such as sexual activities as forces sexual intercourse, incest, fondling, attempted rape and more (Justice.gov. 2017). People often become victims of sexual assault by someone they know and trust (Mason & Lodrick, 2013) which is conflicting to the public’s perception and beliefs that offenders are strangers. Women are the main victims for sexual assault and are 5 times more likely to have been a victim of sexual assault from a male (Wright, 2017, p. 93). Men are victims of sexual assault however only 0.7% of men, compared to 3.2% of women, experience some form of sexual assault which highlights how vulnerable women are compared to men. Sexual assault is publicised and exposed in the media, however is often
Rape is an issue that usually occurs to females and is more likely executed by males than females. Nonetheless, a female’s position in rape can and does go further than being the victim. Considering that women can be the perpetrator in this sexual assault, who are their victims? Rape can occur to anyone by anyone. In the same way a female can be a victim of rape, so can a male. According to RAINN, an anti-sexual assault organization, “About 3% of American men have experienced attempted or completed rape as of 1998, an estimated 4.5 million as of 2010” (Who Are the Victims?). However, men are not necessarily the victims of solely female-on-male rape. In fact, the majority of males who are raped are the victims of male-on-male rape and
Victims of sexual assault include men, women, children, heterosexuals, and homosexuals. It can happen to anyone. However, women are the most commonly victimized. One in four women and one in sixteen men are victims of assault (1). From 2003 to 2004...
Sexual assault is an offense that plagues many U.S. citizens. Although some studies show that rape is on the decline, other studies report that the phenomena actually occuring is that less rape victims are reporting the crime. In fact, approximately 68% of sexual assaults go unreported to the police according to the U.S. Department of Justice in a National Crime Victimization Survey from 2008-2012. It is common knowledge that rape victims are usually severely traumatized after the event, which leaves them susceptible to various emotions such as shame, anxiety, numbness, fear, denial, and guilt. Because of this, many rape victims decide to repress their experience and let it go unheard. However, not only does this prevent them from healing emotionally,
Women are more likely to be victims of rape or sexual violence than men. Seventy-eight percent of victims of women and twenty-two percent are men. Women who are raped before the age of eighteen are twice as likely to be raped again as adults. Victims are at greater risk of rape or sexual assault while intoxicated. ("Sexual Violence: Fact Sh...
In most cases, male offenders may claim that they are not homosexual and may internally justify their aggressive behavior as a display of masculinity. Sadly, sexual assault on men isn't an isolated incident or an unusual situation. In a survey done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the rate of lesbians, gay and bisexual victims of sexual-related crime are equal or even higher than
Gender Differences in Sex Crimes 1 out of every 10 men are raped or sexually assaulted (“Victims of Sexual Violence: Statistics). Sexual crimes are not being justified. More and more victims are not getting the justice they deserve, especially men. These crimes should not be treated different just because of the gender differences. The legislation should be changed to make women and men more equal in the court system of sexual crimes.