There's More to Rape than Men Dominating Women

     I became really immersed in the readings for class tomorrow. Each author was so powerful and descriptive in their words. There was intelligence, care, rebellion and I learned a lot from each piece. Rape is a strong and often difficult topic for people to talk about. Fortunately through over my life I believe it has become more and more acceptable to discuss (thought perhaps this is because I have grown older and more aware. Regardless it has become more acceptable certainly since the 1950's). There is a lot more that most countries can do for their women and men in terms of rape, and the fact that it is a hot topic for discussion in the world of social improvement makes me feel better.
     I did a project last semester for my FSEM about sexual violence in Peru. I learned that in Peru around 50% of women will be sexually assaulted or raped in their lifetimes, and I compared this statistic with the United States and Canada who sit at 25% of women and Japan who sits at 4%. Except for Japan and a few other countries who have minimal sexual violence (though 0% would be perfect of course it's probably unattainable) there is a lot of work needed to be done to create the world safer for women. All sorts of actions can and are being taken, but that's another story. What I wanted to focus on is men.
     All sorts is being written, discussed and done about women who are being raped by men. That is the typical and most common description. Men dominate women, and this statement is often the only fact we hear about rape. What is often neglected are the men who are raped.  Did you know that at least 10% of rape victims are male? one in ten. It's more than most would think. One in 33 men will be raped in their lifetimes. While it certainly doesn't happen in the frequency that women are raped (1 in 6), it is a fact that many men are raped (all statistics are according to rccms.org) And there is a problem in our culture where many are in disbelief that men could be raped. They think that oh well because he got an erection he must have been enjoying it. They think that because he's a guy of course he enjoyed it. They think that women can't be rapists. But they can. And these poor men who survived being raped often receive no to very little support. Their male friends don't believe or understand them. Authority figures do the same. They are all under the impression that men cannot be raped and that they're just being babies for not being okay with what happened to them.
     Fortunately in many countries male rape is being discussed more too. The stigma is being slowly drained away, and I would hope that as I age rape percentages will decreases everywhere for all. I would like to end my blog post with this YouTube video entitled "Why Rape Is Sincerely Hilarious" which I came across blog reading online. It's a short 2 minute video that is really worth the watch. It deals with a man who had been molested, and the mockery and stigma he has had to deal with, and what he ends up having to do to overcome what happened to him.