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Salient. Official Newspaper of the Victoria University Students' Association. Vol 44 No. 9. May 4 1981

Fighting Against Rape — How to Fight Against Rape

page 12

Fighting Against Rape

How to Fight Against Rape

Photo of a male shadow attacking a woman

Rape is a crime which is becoming increasingly more violent and frequent. In 1977 and 1978 there were 34 indictments of rape, 28 of these were convictions. In 1979 there was a dramatic increase of 123 indictments while the number of convictions was 61. Although there has been a sharp rise in indictments of rape the number of convictions has decreased.

Rape is a brutal crime, a display of power by men against women. This relationship of oppressor and oppressed reinforces the traditional roles that are set down by society.

In a society which sees women as just a pretty face and a body and continually prepetrates this image in the media, advertising and various pornographic material, rape is seen as merely an extension of this concept. The conditioning of men by these ideas produces the actual crime of rape and its justification. Men who are conditioned to think of women as mere sex objects, subservient to their will and needs, rape to show their dominance and to reinforce the role that they have been given -one of superiority.

Socially Conditioned Roles

From the moment children are born they are encouraged to act in certain ways according to their sex. The young girl is encouraged to play with dolls to prepare her for her future role as wife and mother, while the young boy is encouraged to play aggressive, physically exertive games. This conditioning also applies to and affects adult men.

This same conditioning is carried on throughout the girl's life, continually encouraged to look pretty, and to act inferior. Society expects men to be dominant and powerful, to be superior in strength and intellect. They are to be seen as protectors and are forced to continue this role as a proof that they are 'real' men.

The act of rape therefore is the extension of the playing of these roles. Rape is a power relationship between men and women, and the myth that it is uncontrollable lust which produces rape cannot be accepted.

The obvious evidence of rape as an act of power by men over women is in the case of war. Rape is part of the prize of the victorious army as it marches through a country, destroying villages etc. To add to the humiliation of losing the battle, is the humiliation of having one's property, women, defiled by the conquerors.

Unfortunately, rape has not only been carried out by soldiers on the winning side. Soldiers who had experienced defeat and humiliation used rape as a means by which they could take out their frustrations.

The idea that men in war situations who had no contact with women for long periods of time and so had to resort to rape to fulfil their sexual needs cannot be seen as feasible in light of the situation that existed in the Vietnamese War. With the invasion of American soldiers came the steady increase in prostitution. The use of women's bodies on the base camps, was seen as a 'way to' keep the boys happy'. However the introduction of institutionised prostitution didn't decrease the number of rapes. Rape was still seen as an inevitable part of war. The actual number of rapes that occurred has been impossible to assess. Most rapes weren't reported as many victims were unable to speak English, had little or no recourse to the law, and were considered an enemy.

A Result of our Society

Rape in today's society is a crime produced by the desire to be part of a group scene, something to do if your bored, depressed or angry. The following two interviews are an example of these attitudes:

James 33: "I think that gang rape happens in people's teens, when it does happen, because at that age its very important to belong to a group; you do anything to stay in with the group. You screw someone because you don't want to lose face.

"The woman and what she wants doesn't come into it. Right from the cradle we're taught that women are inferior and to be used. So many men in prison believe women are just possessions to be taken when and as often as they are needed."

Charlie 26: "I've never been charged with rape. There've been three incidents. Everytime it happened I was depressed, or pissed off or bored.

"One time we were at a bikie party and we - me and three other guys - decided it was time for us to go. The bikies offered us this chick to take with us. On the way home she wouldn't come across so we punched her in the head and screwed her.

"It's wrong to hurt people. It was wrong what I did. But I'll probably do it again if I'm bored or depressed or pissed off and the circumstances arise. Half the time it's the girl messing around. She won't come across so he gets angry and hits her and rapes her."

These two interviews show the attitudes that some men have towards rape today. As long as these attitudes exist the crime of rape will continue.

Part of Overall Oppression

It is obvious that rape is one of the most violent forms of oppression but it is just one aspect of the oppression of women in today's society.

Women generally are still paid less money than men despite the passing of the Equal Pay Act; they still are denied access to some jobs on the basis of their sex eg. women wanting to become firefighters. Unemployment hits women particularly hard - in December 1980 women made up 39% of the unemployed dispite the fact that they make up only 36% of the workforce; today women are still denied the right to control their reproductive lives; and the position of Maori and Polynesian women is that much worse. They not only suffer as workers (90% of Maori people are the working class) and as women, but they are also oppressed as members of a nationality or racial minority.

Who Benefits from Women's Oppression?

By paying women lower wages, forcing women back into the homes in times of economic crisis, and using women to rear the future labour force, it is big business, not individual men, who really benefit.

Sexism is used by big business and the government to justify the super-exploitation of women.

In order to finally end the exploitation of women, including its most brutal manifestation - rape, we must have a economic system which is based on people not profit.

The struggle against rape must be seen as part of the overall struggle against the oppression of women, and most importantly it must be waged by both men and women.

Lorna Massof