Unfortunately, law enforcement, a common preventative measure, isn’t nearly as effective as it should be in South Africa. The police aren’t able to help rape survivors because oftentimes they simply aren’t able to arrest the offender. A multitude of factors influence the amount of law enforcement in rape cases, one of which is the victim’s silence. In many cases, the victims are silent due to women not feeling safe enough to report the crime causing them to often go unreported (Smith 256). If rapes aren’t reported, the police aren’t aware that it took place and they can’t investigate meaning that they have no reason to arrest the rapist. Either that or the rape survivors blame themselves and they don’t feel justified to report it because they
Saunders states that Rape Shield laws are in place to protect victims of sexual assaults and rapes during a criminal trial. They prevent defendants to bring fourth evidence of the victim’s sexual history, orientation or past relationships (Saunders, 2014). Rape can be a very emotional and embarrassing ordeal; it’s very private and personal and can be hard to deal with for years to come. As with many victims of crime especially sexual offenses there are advantages and disadvantages to each new law that is implemented. This paper is designed to analyze the advantages and disadvantage of the Rape Shield Laws.
Rape Shield Laws Facing with much criticism from women’s group with the legal definitions of rape and how rape cases are being processed in the legal system, the government is forced to pass a Rape Law reform in the 1970s. Rape law reform urging courts to treat rape case the same as other crimes, rape law reforms modified traditional rape laws and ratified evidentiary reforms in every state in the United States. The most common and widespread changes occurred in three areas. First, rape was redefined so that there was no longer a single crime of rape.
The criminal laws of the United States are more intent on protecting the rights of criminals than penalizing them. Today’s inmates live better off than most American citizens who are often working two jobs just to meet paying their taxes. A criminal can literally get away with murder because of a technicality, police can barely interrogate suspects without the suspects’ lawyers stating some legal issues that prevent further investigations. It almost seems that the very people who do not respect the law are above it.
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?
“Last year around 6.5% of alleged rapes led to conviction. Why is the conviction level for rape so low?”
I think its important to keep all of this in mind when looking at how Native American women are victims in this vicious cycle. For example for a Native American women she has to keep in mind that statistically she already is more likely to be a victim of abuse. If the abuse does happen it is very difficult for her to speak out, the resources as we have seen are not there. Even if they are the offenders are usually not held accountable for their actions. Law enforcement, have a difficult time trying to charge the offenders because of the different regulations under Native and Federal law. The victims face a constant problem of feeling ashamed for speaking out and being a victim of rape or abuse. This explains to us, why so many cases go under hiding or never come to light. As I have previously said in my last essay, in the example of my mother it is extremely difficult for her to speak about the abuse she suffered in her previous relationship. Which is why I understand the difficulty these women have in speaking out against their offender or about what happened to them. The fact that there is no guarantee that their offender will be held accountable makes it worst, it can make the victim have seconds thoughts about speaking out when they are not sure if anything will be done about it.
Rape can happen to anyone. Women from different cultures, races, ages, and economic level are all vulnerable. It does not matter who you are or where you live, although women of lowest status are most vulnerable to rape, and so are Hispanic and African American women. (An...
The information Cooper-White presents is not just useful for pastoral responses; it is useful for individual and community responses. The most valuable information she provided was the “Essential Message of Hope” which should be expressed to the victim at the time a violent act is being reported and from time to time afterwards. She states it is important the messages of hope are clear and direct to ensure the victim listens and retains the statements. Repeating the statements time to time reminds the victim hope exists and there is support from the individual and God. Each message directly touches on every wrong statement that has been told to a woman re-victimizing her. For example, the first is, “I believe you” and the second is, “This should have never happened to you”. This not only initiates the building of trust, it also allows the victim to feel safe. A more common, gender bias and re-victimizing response is, “Are you sure it was not consensual?” or, “Are you sure you did not provoke this?” The messages of hope are not just appropriate responses to any gender bias violent crime reported by man or woman, they should be a culture society strives for to continue in the path of progress to prevent and end violence against
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,
...apidly our world today. There are hundreds of places people may go and visit for help or more information about rape and sexual violence. It is very important that when and if it happens, the victim needs to report the crime to authorities immediately. People must know the truth about rape and sexual violence and what to do about it.
According To an article from The Guardian, author Maryan Qasim states, “I recently learned of a poll showing the worst places in the world to be a woman. To my surprise, Somalia was ranked 5th” (Qasim 2). This is not surprising because women are treated horribly and are seen as nothing more than replaceable objects. In another article where the publisher and author are unknown states, “Many victims will not report rape and sexual assault because they lack confidence in the justice system, are unaware of available health and justice services or cannot access them, and fear reprisal and stigma should they report rape” (8). This is a perfect example of what needs to be changed. Women need to feel safe and know that they can count on people to
...nd others. Be that voice that many don’t have and are afraid to come out. Help those who have suffered tremendous pain and suffering. There is so much to life that no one should feel violated and ashamed for what has happened to them. Everyone deserves a right to live in safety and enjoy life without being in fear all the time. Report those who have committed rape and seek help immediately. It is everyone’s responsibility to look out for each other. There are so many support groups and online support from people who have been raped and have suffered and overcome this tragic happening. Many will never forget what it was like to suffer and be raped, there is always hope for recovery and living a life of happiness. Report those rapists and put them in jail for their terrible actions. No one deserves to be violated by anyone. Everyone deserves to be respected and loved.
Is anyone truly a stranger to nightmares? Has anyone not woken up in a feverish sweat with a racing pulse or pounding heart? Whose eyes have never wildly searched their room for the phantoms of a dream? Now, what if the familiar consolation of learning it was all in your head never came? How do you wake up from a nightmare that is, in fact, a reality? I think I’m getting ahead of myself. What I mean to say is, I was raped, and rape is a nightmare.
In the recent times, rape has become a new global mantra. What are the implication of this narrative to the DRC society? The increased recognition has led to the combatants to use rape as “effective bargaining tool” (Autuserre 2012, p.16). Far, (2009) contended that, there is a scale of differences in the prevalence of violence in particular to rape sites perpetrators and victim’s targets. In this context, the rape in conflict zone holds a strong notion as to achieve “strategic goals”. Most of the combatant rape as to please their superior or fear of being punished or called women
First of all the most important tool we have available against this type of crime are the authorities, which include the police department, hospital, and social workers. If they manage to work together as a team to make the whole process of protecting a victim more efficiently, it will encourage victims to actually phone for help. It is believed that over half of the abuses remain unreported due to the fear of the victims from their intimate partner who has committed the crime. If such crime is reported in a western country, the offender would be arrested by the police department until a clear picture is made of the happenings. In addition, the victim, which is usually the wife of the offender, would be brought to a safe place were she would receive medical attention and can talk to someone (a women), since the best method of digesting such tragedy is to share it with someone that can listen and give advice. Safe places are established in many modern countries such as Switzerland, but unfortunately this is not the norm in all parts of the country, since it is not law yet. Such safe houses are essential in aiding the sufferers, since t...