Here’s A Non-Protective Headline: Say the Word “Rape”

A recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that in the United States 1 in 16 women, ages 18 to 44, report their first sexual encounter as rape; this is equivalent to an estimated 3.3 million women. The study also found the majority of victims were adolescents when they were raped. The average age of most victims was approximately 15 years old, while their assailant’s average age was 27. This suggests a “major power discrepancy,” according to Dr. Laura Hawks as quoted in NPR.

Dr. Hawks is the main author of this significant study, as well as a research fellow at the Cambridge Health Alliance, a health care provider located in Cambridge, Mass. Quoted in NPR, Dr. Hawks expresses her immense concern towards these severe and frequent assaults.

“It’s quite alarming, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg because this study is only including women aged 18 to 44,” she explained. “You can imagine that if we asked this of women of all ages, the absolute number would be millions higher.”

The study also confirms that women who were raped during their first sexual encounter compared to women who had sex voluntarily the first time were more likely to experience long-term health problems, including unwanted first pregnancies, abortions, endometriosis, pelvic inflammatory disease, and mental health risks due to trauma instigated from the rape.

Over half of the victims—56 percent—stated that they were verbally coerced into having sex, and according to Dr. Alison Huang, an associate professor of medicine at the University of California San Francisco, women who are coerced can “feel more shamed, isolated and traumatized, because of the extent to which their experiences are not endorsed by others, or regarded sympathetically by others,” as quoted in Jama Internal Medicine.

The trauma endured by real women goes way further than a medical study. These are real stories, and the lives impacted by rape are tremendous.

Beth, a 20-year-old LIM College student, recounted her story and more so how being raped and coerced into losing her virginity impacted her mentality and the relationships around her. Beth’s first name has been changed to maintain her privacy.

“I was 15 turning 16 when I lost my virginity. The boy I was seeing knew I wanted losing my virginity to be special but one day I was at his house, and he kept pressuring me to have sex. I asked him if he would shut up if I said yes. Afterwards, he asked me if I had a “special time” and when I said no, he laughed,” she said. “I went through—and at times continue to go through—hyper-sexuality which has affected all of my relationships, including my family. My dad wouldn’t look at me, my brother barely wanted to speak to me. [Other men] were insecure that I had slept with so many men after the fact. I was overall a meaner and crueler person after my abusive relationship and had to take many years to face myself.”

The rise of the Me Too movement has ignited an open conversation in regards to the prevalence of sexual violence, and the movement focuses on two types of behavior: sexual harassment and sexual assault. The Me Too movement gained momentum on social media platforms, where it is often indicated as #MeToo.

Tarana Burke, founder of the Me Too movement, started using the phrase on Myspace in 2006 to highlight the normality of sexual violence experienced by women, specifically women of color. The movement became mainstream and popularized when actress Alyssa Milano posted on Twitter calling for all women who have been victims of sexual harassment and assault to comment “me too.” This was in response to women in Hollywood opening up about their own experiences, many involving Harvey Weinstein.

In one year, the #MeToo hashtag circulated more than 19 million times, according to a Pew Research Center analysis.

During the TIME 100 Summit this past April, Burke discussed the reality of how this movement tends to primarily focus on “powerful men in Hollywood and the mostly white female celebrities who have accused them of sexual assault and misconduct.” The activist wants to put attention on the “untold” stories, including those of indigenous women and minorities.

“The women of color, trans women, queer people—our stories get pushed aside and our pain is never prioritized,” said Burke as quoted in TIME. “We don’t talk about indigenous women. Their stories go untold.”

Native American women are twice as likely to experience a rape compared to all races, according to RAINN. This is horrifying considering that 1 in 6 American women have been the victim of an attempted or completed rape.

Even with the Me Too movement opening up the conversations regarding sexual assault and its survivors, many women are still reluctant to come forward with their story due to the ideology of rape culture. And even if victims contact the police, the majority of rapists only serve a minuscule amount of jail time or no time at all.

For every 1000 sexual assaults, 995 perpetrators will walk free, according to RAINN. Additionally, 3 out of 4 sexual assaults go unreported.

Beth described her own perspective towards rape culture and why she decided to not involve the police.

“Rape culture to me is America. It’s the Middle East. It’s every country in the world that doesn’t call rapists what they are. Rape culture is the news calling Brock Turner a Stanford swimmer, but I’m a promiscuous girl wearing a short skirt,” she stated. “What victim or survivor would want to share his or her story if they know at least half the people who hear it will question its validity? I said no [to pressing charges] because my rapist was much richer than me, and my family and I figured I would lose [in court] and be the girl who cried rape at school.”

Rape culture is amplified through the media’s avoidance of the words “rapist” and “rape,” especially when the assaulter is of a certain race and socio-economic class. This causes many victims to remain silent, believing their story holds no repercussions to their rapist.

Brock Turner is a key example of how the media portrays rapists if they are white and upper-middle class. Racial disparity is seen continuously in media coverage, causing perceptions to be made about non-white offenders versus white offenders.

“In my case, he was a rich white dude. Who was going to listen to me?” Beth exclaimed. “Now I regret not going to court because he’s still hurting other girls the way he hurt me. I feel like it’s my fault. That’s the biggest burden I carry with me every day. Not being a survivor, or a victim. But not preventing it from happening to others.”