This week, Brock Turner was released from jail and ordered to register as a sex offender, so I feel it's a good time to talk about rape culture. Rape culture is defined as the way society perceives rape, blames the victims, and deems sexual violence as normal. If you have been on the internet or watched the news in the past 6 months you know who Brock Turner is. He was a star swimmer a Stanford, had a good family life and upbringing, good grades - an all around "good guy." That's what most headlines would have you believe - that he was an "all around good guy."

Seemingly, more people are concerned with Brock keeping his reputation as a swimmer and not as a rapist. His mother shielded him from cameras and reporters as he registered as a sex offender. This man should not be protected. This man should be held responsible for his actions - he needs to face the media because society has a few words for him. I know I am not the first person to ever voice my opinion on this matter, but people need to realize that shaming the victim of rape only makes you a disgrace on this earth. Whether that victim is a woman or a male, white or black, tall or short, young or old, rape is rape, period - no exceptions, no excuses. Wearing provocative clothing or being drunk does not give anyone the consent to even touch another person, let alone violate them on a deep and personal level.

1 out of every 6 women and 1 out of 10 men are either raped or someone has attempted to rape them. Do those numbers seem acceptable to you? There are still so many others who are silently fighting with themselves because they believe they are the reason that it happened, which is so far from the truth. Society needs to get a grip on how badly rape ruins lives, but society is not the only problem. The justice system needs to implement stricter punishments for rape.

Brock Turner only served 3 out of 6 months of his sentence and got out for "good behavior". What kind of messed up legal system allows this to happen? People have made memes about it because it's so absolutely ridiculous. I've seen one that reads, "I've been using the same tube my mascara for longer than Brock Turner was in jail." That is so sad. Who's to say that he learned his lesson if he was only in there a short while? Society is now giving him a harsher time than the judge did on his case. Society has become more aware of the fact that rape is an unspeakable crime, but what if this wasn't a national headline? What about the thousands of other rapes that happen throughout the year? There is, surely, a woman or man watching the news and seeing how upset people are about Brock Turner, and they can't help but think, "Where was this support when I needed it?" or "Why was I treated so differently?" and "Why were people telling me it was my fault, but are so passionate about this case?"

Rape is rape. It does not matter who you are. Sex should always be consensual. If you do not hear a verbal "yes," then stop what you are doing. The chances that women will develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder after being raped are 50-90 percent. Rape victims are four times more likely to think about suicide compared to people who have not, and are 13 times more likely to attempt suicide. This is serious and should not be taken lightly. Let's bring those statistics down.