Headlines across the globe are testimony to it: getting away with rape legally is actually not that hard.
It starts way before anyone goes to court.
It is estimated in Australia that just 20-25 per cent of rapes are reported to police, and only 15 per cent of those proceed to the criminal justice system.
Of the 21,380 victims of sexual assault recorded by Australian police in 2015, around 10 per cent will have resulted in a guilty verdict.
Watch: For anyone who needs a reminder, consent is like a cup of a tea. This video explains it perfectly. Post continues below.
This means less than two per cent of reported and unreported rapes in Australia result in a conviction.
Less than two per cent.
So how do you get away with rape?
Like this:
- Make sure the defence knows the victim has had at least one alcoholic drink.
- Get really good at acting like consent is a confusing concept.
- Have an inflated sense of entitlement.
- If it actually gets to court, be sure to be wealthy and privileged.
- Believe that the only sure sign that you should not put your penis in someone is a fully clothed woman drinking a peppermint tea saying "No - do not rape me please," with one hand doing the stop signal and the other holding up a STOP sign.
- Sit back and allow rape culture to do its thing.
- Believe that women are property. Preferably your property.
- Attend a prestigious educational establishment.
- Say things like, 'I know she slept with my friend Eddie'.
Listen: Mia Freedman, Monique Bowley and Jessie Stephens call out the grope on Mamamia Out Loud. Post continues below.
- Make sure to take pictures of your date - sorry, victim - looking like she's having a great time before you rape her.
- Watch so much porn that the idea of consent has been scrubbed from your brain.
- Make sure what you did was so heinous the victim will be forever humiliated and never want to talk about it. Especially not in public.
- Have a promising career, be a success in your chosen field so witnesses can say things like "He has his whole life ahead of him" and "He's just not that kind of man."
- Just do it.
Top Comments
Ageeed, but how do we fix it?
Many rapes come down to he said / she said which makes it very hard to find someone guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Certainly it should start with every claim being taken very seriously which from what I've read isn't the case at the moment.
False reporting of rape is low, the same as any other crime. So why not treat it like any other crime? It's only someone's word that their home got broken into, too, but the police investigate, collect evidence and take the person at their word from the get go.
Yes, and as i said every claim should be taken seriously.
If your home is broken into there is often other evidence, what i am saying is many of these sexual assaults come down to he said / she said with no other evidence, especially when dealing with 'date rape' scenarios.
When my house was broken into, they just came through an unlocked door. There was no evidence, other than what I told police, that my wallet and a few other things were missing. The police took me at my word from the get go. Because they know that false reporting is low. So even if it is a he said/ she said thing, chances are, she is telling the truth and the police need to investigate the same way they would any other crime. Collecting evidence, looking for witnesses, etc.
The only reason that men can still get away with it being a he said/she said situation is because a man's word is seen to be worth more than a woman's.
Like i said, repeatedly, everything should be taken seriously.
No, it's not that the man's word is given more weight, it's because (generally) both parties are given equal weight and in a 50/50 scenario it's hard to find someone guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Don't forget the skinny jeans! You can't rape a woman wearing skinny jeans. Do they really wonder why women don't report rape?