tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8107037609455779557.post8310495122198801259..comments2024-02-28T05:56:28.293-08:00Comments on California Correctional Crisis: The "Un-Othering" of Crime: A New and Impressive Anti-Rape CampaignHadar Aviramhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15200780666976305749noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8107037609455779557.post-17412117108418315162010-10-09T21:34:39.619-07:002010-10-09T21:34:39.619-07:00Wrong, I think, Anonymous. Part of the problem is ...Wrong, I think, Anonymous. Part of the problem is that you expect people to be able to identify and label situations that are by definition difficult to label. Expecting women to use the word "rape" in a date or party scenario is making unfounded, and I believe ultimately untrue, assumptions about one's ability to be assertive in situations that in themselves deprive women from assertiveness.Hadar Aviramhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15200780666976305749noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8107037609455779557.post-37285093294682598322010-10-09T21:19:10.793-07:002010-10-09T21:19:10.793-07:00Here we go again. This is merely a re-packaging o...Here we go again. This is merely a re-packaging of the "no means no" campaign that sounds good in theory, but doesn't work in practice. The truth is that "no" does not mean "no." It can mean a variety of things, and both men and women know exactly how slippery that word can be. <br /><br />It's easy to say, "why can't men just get it through their heads that no means no?" The reason is that women's behavior, brought about by the pressures of a society that extols chastity as a virtue, teaches men otherwise. That is to say, women have long been pressured into reflexively saying "no" because saying "yes," especially saying "yes" too easily, sets them up for the contempt of their peers. So we pull out the "no" in times of "maybe," "ok, I think," "not just yet," "ask me some more," and, of course, "no." <br /><br />The author says that the campaign is good because it places all the responsibility on the "assailants, who are in the best position to stop the bad situation from happening." But the target audience for this campaign is NOT the premeditated rapist who jumps out of the bushes, but the unthinking or unknowing guy who thinks his girl "really wants it" despite her claims to the contrary.<br /><br />If you REALLY want to reduce the incidence of rape, especially date rape, then forget about trying to apportion responsibility, and instead go with what works. To that end, you should arm the woman with an unambiguous word -- like, say, "rape." <br /><br />Any man who proceeds after a woman says "if you continue, I would consider this rape" is a rapist. Not a whole lot of ambiguity there. We should teach kids, and everyone, that there's an absolute word out there -- "rape" -- that is a barrier not to be crossed, unless you want to go to prison. <br /><br />The problem, naturally, is that such a paradigm is not politically correct as it places the burden on the female. My feeling is that sacrificing a little PC for fewer rapes is a pretty good tradeoff. And really, if women can say "no," then we can also say "rape," right?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com