It seems that many of the top news stories of today have revolved around what has become known as "rape culture," which is defined as the act of rape being seen as pervasive or normalized due to social attitudes of gender and sexuality. According to TIME magazine, one-in-five American women are survivors of rape or sexual assault, a significantly high statistic. Hitting even closer to home is that many cases of rape happen on college campuses, with nearly one-in-five women experiencing sexual assault in college. That being said, there is still not much done about this common, yet illegal and traumatizing crime, as there is not much justice to be had for the victims, and it is easy for the assailants to get away with it.
What is even worse is that the world could know who is committing the crime of rape, and they can still get away with it. Recently, many of the stories on this topic in the news have involved young people, either in high school or college, and include more than one person committing the act of rape, usually on a victim that is unconscious due to the fact that she was roofied or had too much to drink. The worst part about these stories is that the people involved have been recording the violent act on their cell phones and posting the videos on social media. This has been repeated in cases like Steubenville High School, where a young girl was assaulted by two of her peers, who then put the evidence on Facebook and Twitter.
The two high school boys that were involved, Trent Mays and Ma'lik Richmond, were charged and found guilty of sexually assaulting the girl, along with another conviction for Mays of child pornography since the girl was underage when he posted the sexually inappropriate pictures and videos of her. Although they were found guilty, the two criminals were released early as they were seen as “medium" offenders.
This is unfortunately not the only case where a circumstance of sexual assault has been looked at as funny, entertaining or the victim's fault. At Minnesota State University, wrestling team member Angel M. Vega was charged for third-degree sexual assault after raping an 18-year-old girl and recording it on his cell phone. While alcohol was said to be involved in the case and MSU tries to spread safety awareness to students, it didn't stop the incident from happening and possibly ruining this girl's life.
Rape is a crime. It is illegal in all 50 states, and yet it has been glorified to the point that it can happen in broad daylight, as is the case for a group of Panama City Beach goers during spring break this past year. Video recordings revealed that a girl was sexually assaulted in broad daylight while she was passed out while bystanders watched. How does this happen? When did people stop seeing rape for the disgusting, horrific crime that it is and decide it was the victim's fault instead? I think we all need to take what we view on social media with a grain of salt, and start helping others instead of pathetically watching on.
