Despite years of feminism fighting for equality among men and women, there are still

many issues that women face at much higher rates than their male counterparts. One of those

issues is regarding sexual assault and rape. Rape, according to my own knowledge, is when a

perpetrator sexually forces themselves onto a victim and involves some type of penetration.

Sexual assault differs slightly by not requiring penetration but includes all other types of

harassment including groping. This brief document will explore the broad issue of sexual assault,

provide the local political/cultural landscape of North Carolina regarding sexual assault, and

provide everyday acts of dissent to end sexual assault.

Exploring the Issue

To start, The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention provide some horrifying statistics

about who is sexually assaulted the most and all the statistics point to women. Nineteen percent

of women are raped in the United States during their lifetime. Forty-four percent of women

experience some kind of sexual assault during their lifetime. Ninety-nine percent of perpetrators

of women who were sexually assaulted were assaulted by a man. Among every race/ethnic

group, women are more likely to be raped than men of the same community. Fifty-five percent of

Native American women, forty-seven percent of Caucasian women, thirty-eight percent of

African American women, thirty-seven percent of Hispanic women, and thirty-two percent of

Asian women are sexually assaulted. The same is also true among different sexual orientations.

Seventy-five percent of bisexual women, forty-six percent of homosexual women, and forty-

three percent of heterosexual women are sexually assaulted. Additionally, if a woman is raped as

a minor then she is twice as likely to be raped again in her lifetime. Also, forty-seven percent of

women knew their perpetrator. These statistics do not suggest that men do not also get assaulted,
but merely shows that women report these crimes with more frequency. (National Center for

Victims of Crime, 2016)

It is not just men though who have fears of reporting their sexual assault. The Federal

Bureau of Investigation collected information from local police departments about the frequency

at which rape and sexual assault is/is not reported. Forty-one percent of victims, male and

female, did not report the incident because they did not think law enforcement could or would

help them. Of those same victims, twenty-percent felt it was a personal matter that did not need

to be dealt with by law enforcement, thirty-three percent had more than one reason for not

reporting, and six percent thought that it was not important enough to get law enforcement

involved. The data collected also showed that if the perpetrator was a stranger, used a weapon, or

injured the victim that it was more likely to be reported. Also, married victims or victims with

higher education reported the assault more often. Current statistics show that women are raped

and sexually assaulted more than men but that both men and women underreport their assault.

(Kruttschintt, Kalsbeek, & House, 2014)

Knowing that women also underreport sexual assault and rape is helpful but does not

answer why women are sexually assaulted and raped in the first place. The Wiley Handbook on

the Psychology of Violence suggests that pornography is one of the reasons why women are

sexually assaulted and raped (DeKeseredy, 2016). Due to the invention and widespread use of

the internet, pornography is more accessible. The studies conducted showed that watching or

reading porn is strongly associated with violence against women. Pornography is also very

violent and racist, which would explain that certain races experience more sexual assault than

others as mentioned above. The statistics from The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention

showed that Native American women were more likely to be raped or sexually assault than any
other race (National Center for Victims of Crime, 2016). Another explanation behind

pornography being a cause for women to be raped and sexually assaulted is that the primary role

of a woman in pornography is subservient to men. Women in pornography are used as tools to

provide sexual services to men, both willingly and unwillingly. The prevalence of unwilling

sexual services in pornography strengthens the idea that it is okay to rape or sexually assault a

woman. A rapidly growing social scientific literature shows that degrading, racist, and violent

sexual images presented on the Internet and elsewhere are strongly associated with various types

of real life male violence against women and children (DeKeseredy, 2016). Producers of

pornography may try to argue that it is all just fantasy and that the women depicted are in no

actual danger. The woman may not actually be in this real life situation, but the distribution of

this fantasy promotes the occurrence of real life situations. (DeKeseredy, 2016)

These real life situations are made possible by rape culture. The University of North

Carolina at Charlotte defines rape culture as when we have become desensitized to rape and

sexual assault because these acts have become normalized through media and other imagery

(Floyd & Madonna-Rosario, 2014). Southern Connecticut State University provides examples

of rape culture include blaming the victim, dismissing the acts of the perpetrator, assuming that

only promiscuous women get raped, and tolerance of sexual harassment (Southern Connecticut

State University, 2016). My current knowledge on this topic before doing any research consisted

of knowing about rape culture and knowing examples of rape culture. I did not know about any

of the jaw-dropping statistics that were mentioned above or that pornography was a cause of the

violence.

More on my current knowledge of rape culture, blaming the victim consists of saying

things like, she was asking for it by wearing that. This statement further promotes that women
need to always have their guard up and are not free to wear articles of clothing as they choose.

Also, insinuating that an outfit is why a woman got raped is outrageous and a result of the

objectification of womens bodies. Dismissing the acts of the perpetrator consists of saying

things like, boys will be boys. This statement promotes that it is okay for boys to assault

women because it is natural for boys to be aggressive. The thought of this being an acceptable

reason for assault makes me cringe because when you simplify it like that, it is truly horrifying

that anyone could be okay with that. Assuming that only promiscuous women get raped consists

of saying things like, if she wasnt so easy she would not have been in that situation.

Referring to the statistics provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, forty-four

percent of U.S. women experience sexual assault in their life. It would be incorrect to say that

forty-four percent of U.S. women are promiscuous, so this assumption is off base. Tolerance of

sexual harassment consists of seeing sexual assault and not saying anything about it. It is not just

the job of someone in Human Resources to catch sexual harassment. It is the job of every one

who opposes all types of sexual harassment, which should be everyone.

Rape and sexual assault are different but involve similar situations and are caused by the

promotion of rape culture. My prior knowledge on this subject was limited to that of rape culture

but has been expanded to see the full scope of how frequent sexual assault and rape occur and

what one of the causes for it might be. Rape culture promotes the idea that it would be okay to

blame the victim, dismiss the acts of a perpetrator, assume that only promiscuous women get

raped or sexually assaulted, and tolerate sexual harassment. I believe that it is not okay to do any

of these things and that women should be able to speak out against their perpetrators without fear

of scrutiny.
 The Local Landscape

Victim blaming for cases of sexual assault and rape is a result of poor education about

sexual violence. There are several organizations in North Carolina that have made it their

mission to support victims of these assaults and to educate the public about the importance of

talking about sexual violence to change rape culture. The North Carolina Coalition Against

Sexual Assault and the Safe Alliance are two examples of these organizations.

The North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault (NCCASA) is a statewide

organization working to end sexual violence through education, advocacy, and legislation

(NCCASA, 2017). The NCCASA was officially incorporated on February 16th of 1988. The

range of their programs extends from local to state and national levels. The NCCASA has a rape

crisis center in each of North Carolinas one-hundred counties in order to make their services

available to all North Carolina Residents. (NCCASA, 2017)

The services that the NCCASA provides on a local level include support of victims,

advocating for other local rape crisis programs, and providing educational resources to change

the local landscape of rape culture. In this context, local refers to anywhere that there is an

NCCASA office, not specifically the Charlotte region where this essay is being written or the

Raleigh area where the administrative headquarters is stationed. The educational resources to

change the local landscape of rape culture are the most prevalent to this essay. Of these

resources, the prevention resources will do the most to make changes to victim blaming. The

prevention resources are listed on their website and are helpful to changing how fault is assessed

in cases of sexual assault through their Coaching Boys Into Men prevention program. This

program focuses on the relationship between high school athletes and their coaches. The program

emphasizes healthy relationships and respect with their coaches but goes deeper by applying the
same concepts to sexual and romantic relationships. This program shifts the responsibility of

rape and sexual assault away from women to men. This change in responsibility recognizes that

the woman is not asking for it by choosing a certain style of clothing. This method makes men

more responsible for their actions against their victims and devalues the idea that boys will be

boys. No one would ever say that the victim of a homicide was at fault for being murdered, and

the NCCASA recognizes that sexual assault and rape are equally as criminal as murder.

(NCCASA, 2017)

Another notable contribution to changing how blame is assessed in cases of sexual

assault and rape that the NCCASA has made is through their other prevention methods. Some of

those methods include programs called Engaging Men & Boys and the Young Advocates

Institute. The Engaging Men & Boys program focuses on engaging African American men and

Boys in North Carolina in creating sexual violence-free communities. This is the only program in

North Carolina that focuses on this specific demographic. The Young Advocates Institute is a

social justice summer camp for youth between thirteen and seventeen years old. The Institute

was established in 2012 and occurs annually. The focus of The Institute is on

prevention/intervention education. Both of these prevention programs/methods help to change

how blame is assessed in cases of sexual assault and rape in a similar way as the Coaching Boys

Into Men program by educating groups of people about how to prevent rape and sexual assault.

The difference between the Coaching Boys Into Men program and the other two programs is that

the other two programs focus more on creating sexual violence-free communities rather than

shifting the responsibility of rape prevention from women to men. But by educating about rape

prevention, we learn about how blame is assessed so that we do not make those assumptions

either and become agents of positive social change instead. (NCCASA, 2017)
 Another program in North Carolina that supports victims of sexual assault and rape is

Safe Alliance. Safe Alliance is an organization that serves individuals and families in the

Charlotte-Mecklenburg area. This organization was formed in 1909 and is supported by

donations. Their mission is to provide hope and healing for people in crisis (Safe Alliance,

2017). Safe Alliance offers events that educate about the issues surrounding sexual assault and

rape.

One notable event that Safe Alliance offers is the Men For Change event. The event

strives to raise awareness of the role that men can play to change realities of womens lives. The

event is held annually to continue to raise awareness and to grow the program. By teaching about

how men can change realities in womens lives, men learn self-responsibility for their actions

and behaviors towards women. This program, and the ones mentioned earlier that the NCCASA

sponsors, reminded me of a Facebook post that I read a few years ago. The post was from a

colleague of mine and it said, instead of teaching women how to defend themselves, teach men

not to rape. I think that this is exactly what all of these programs are trying to accomplish by

teaching about prevention methods. (Safe Alliance, 2017)

The North Carolina Coalition Against Sexual Assault and Safe Alliance are two programs

that are trying to end victim blaming in cases of sexual assault and rape. Both organizations work

locally and sometimes nationally to raise awareness for their respective causes. Continuing to

educate the public about rape and sexual assault prevention will change the local landscape of

rape culture and put an end to victim blaming.

Acts of Dissent
 Have you ever disagreed with someone when they said something you knew in your heart

of hearts to be wrong but did not speak out against them? Chances are you answered yes to that

question. In most cases, the bystander effect takes control and we just let ignorance thrive by not

contesting it. This same situation occurs in relation to victim blaming in cases of sexual assault.

Standing against victim blaming and supporting victims in their time of crisis is much less

daunting than it might seem. There are at least three things that any person can do that would

cause positive social change in rape culture. The first thing is a bit of passive activism because it

is an internal fight that you must win. You must truly believe that the victim of sexual assault is

never at fault for the assault. Second, you need to be firm in your support of victims even if you

know the perpetrator. Truly stand up and say something when something needs to be said. Third,

organize a group or Facebook campaign to commit to stop victim blaming in your personal lives.

The steps to end victim blaming are small but require a full life-long commitment to social

justice.

A bit of passive activism goes a long way in the fight for positive social change. Passive

activism is a type of activism that does not require immediate actions. Instead, it involves

making internal changes to behavior that will correspond with positive social change. If you find

yourself ever thinking that the victim of a sexual assault was at fault, then a change in

perspective is necessary. Even if the victim is dressed in a way that society would deem

scandalous they are still not at fault for the assault. Blaming a victim for their assault based on

what they are wearing is the same as blaming a store clerk for being robbed because they didnt

have a loaded gun behind the counter or blaming a homicide victim for their own death because

they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. The acts of the perpetrator cannot be dismissed.

In the case of sexual assault, that further perpetuates rape cultures presence. Perpetrators must
be held accountable for their actions so that rape culture doesnt grow. Making a commitment to

yourself that you will stop victim blaming in your own life will have an effect on the people you

surround yourself with as well as yourself. Hopefully, it will also cause those people to make that

same commitment and the cycle will continue until victim blaming comes to an end and we are

united in the fight against victim blaming and in support of victims.

Standing in support of sexual assault victims becomes tricky when you know the

perpetrator. In general, people try to avoid negativity in their lives and if you know the

perpetrator and feel like you still want to be involved with this person even though they have

been accused of a serious crime, you will subconsciously convince yourself that there is no way

that the crime took place or that the perpetrator is at fault. You can combat this instinct with

some help from the passive activism previously discussed. If you apply your commitment to end

victim blaming and stand firm in your support of the victim even when you know the perpetrator,

you are well on your way to becoming an agent of positive social change. Standing in support of

the victim goes beyond just believing that the victim is not at fault. Offer help to the victim

where you can or donate to battered women shelters or rape prevention organizations. Taking the

initiative to help a victim in need moves your passive activism one step forward and makes it

simply activism.

Another action that you can take that is more active than the passive methods previously

discussed would be to start a social media campaign for the purpose of informing people about

the dangers of victim blaming and asking for them to publicly pledge to end victim blaming in

their own lives. The pledge could consist of agreeing to stop yourself from victim blaming and to

stop those around you from perpetuating victim blaming. One person can really make a

difference here by starting a dialogue about victim blaming. If you share this campaign with your
friends, they will share it if they support it, and then those friends will share it with their friends

and those friends will share it if they support it and the process will continue like that. The

danger that one faces when posting a campaign is facing scrutiny for a poorly organized

argument. If you were to decide to go this route you would need to provide lots of examples and

conversation about victim blaming along with your argument so that it could not be attacked for

lacking information. However, anyone is talented enough to craft a well stated argument.

Anyone is able to take part in any one of these steps to positive social change. In fact, I

have taken part in one of them myself. I have committed to myself that I would always believe

that the victim is not at fault for their assault. Believe it or not, before starting this project I used

to think that there is no way to generalize that a victim could not be at fault ever. I assumed that

there had to be some kind of scenario where the victim had some share in the blame for the

assault. After doing more research I could not find any reason why the victim would be at fault

for the assault. The only reasons I came across only perpetuate rape culture. One was the classic

she was asking for it by dressing that way/being out alone at night. The other was boys will

be boys, which just shifts the blame to the victim by stating that men cannot be held

accountable for their actions due to some biological reason which is just complete crap. I still

dont understand why society is willing to let perpetrators of sexual assault off the hook when

their crime is just as felonious as a murder. I urge you, the reader, if you have not already, please

commit to end victim blaming in your personal life and in those around you when it presents

itself because there is no good reason not to do so.

Being an agent of positive social change does not require an advanced degree. It only

requires kindness to your fellow humans. In the case of sexual assault, you can commit to

believing a victim is never at fault, stand in support of the victim even when its not easy, or
gather likeminded individuals via social media for a common cause. Being an agent of positive

social change only takes a little bit of initiative.

The statistics surrounding sexual assault in The United States of America are horrifying

to say the least. Fortunately, in states like North Carolina, there are organizations that focus on

educating the public about why these assaults occur and what influences rape culture can have.

These programs have a national reach and when combined with the Acts of Dissent mentioned

above, we can end rape culture and victim blaming, and hopefully eliminate sexual assault as a

whole.
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Floyd, D., & Madonna-Rosario, N. (2014, October 16). Understanding Sexual Assault, Relationship
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Kruttschintt, C., Kalsbeek, W. D., & House, C. C. (2014). Estimating the Incidence of Rape and Sexual
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National Center for Victims of Crime. (2016). Sexual Violence. Washington, D.C. : National Government .

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