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Rape is a Crime of forcing somebody into Sexual Activity , in particular Sexual Penetration , against his or her will through use of physical force, threat of injury, or other duress. It is also considered rape if the victim is unable to say "no" to intercourse, due to the effects of drugs or alcohol or is under the legal age of consent. The word originates from the Latin verb ''rapere'': to seize or take by force. The Latin term for the act of rape itself is ''raptus.'' Originally, the word ''rape'' was akin to ''rapine'', '' Rapture '', '' Raptor '', and ''rapacious'', and referred to the more general violations, such as Looting , destruction, and capture of citizens that are inflicted upon a town or country during War , eg. the Rape Of Nanking . Today, some dictionaries still define ''rape'' to include any serious and destructive Assault against a person or community. This article, however, focuses on Sexual Assault . HISTORY , a 1582 sculpture by Giambologna .]] The concept of rape, both as an Abduction and in the sexual sense, makes its first appearance in early Religious texts. In Greek Mythology , for example, the rape of women, as exemplified by the rape of Europa , and male rape, found in the myth of Laius and Chrysippus , were mentioned. Different values were ascribed to the two actions. The rape of Europa by Zeus is represented as an abduction followed by consensual lovemaking, similar perhaps to the rape of Ganymede by Zeus, and went unpunished. The rape of Chrysippus by Laius, however, is represented in darker terms, and was known in Antiquity as "the crime of Laius", a term which came to be applied to all male rape. It was seen as an example of Hubris in the original sense of the word, i.e. violent Outrage , and its punishment was so severe that it destroyed not only Laius himself, but also his son, Oedipus . In antiquity and until the late Middle Ages , rape was seen in most Culture s less as a crime against a particular girl or woman than against the male figure she "belonged" to. Thus, the penalty for rape was often a fine, payable to the father or the husband whose "goods" were "damaged". That position was later replaced in many cultures by the view that the woman, as well as her lord, should share the fine equally. Rape, in the course of Warfare , also dates back to antiquity, ancient enough to have been mentioned in the Bible . The Greek , Persian and Roman troops would routinely rape women and boys in the conquered towns. Rape, as an Adjunct to warfare, was prohibited by the Military Codices of Richard II and Henry V ( 1385 and 1419 respectively). These laws formed the basis for convicting and executing rapists during the Hundred Years' War ( 1337 - 1453 ). Since the 1970's many changes have occurred in the perception of sexual assault due in large part to the feminist movement and its public characterization of rape as a crime of power but not of sex. In some countries the women's liberation movement of the 1970's created the first rape crisis centers. This movement was led by the National Organization for Women (NOW) ( One of the first two rape crisis centers, the D.C. Rape Crisis Center ([http://www.dcrcc.org ), opened in 1972. It was created to promote sensitivity and understanding of rape and its effects on the victim. Marital rape first became a crime in the . On September 2 , 1998 the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal For Rwanda made sexual violence a War Crime . Current topics being debated are the peripheralized victims of rape — male rape victims of both male and female rapists, female-female rape and parental-rape Incest victims, LGBT domestic violence and rape victims, marital rape victims and child sexual abuse victims. Other emerging issues are the concept of victim blame and its causes, female sexual aggression, new theories of rape and gender, date rape drugs and their effects as well as the psychological effects of rape trauma syndrome. NON-SEXUAL USAGE OF TERM In its original sense, dating back to antiquity, "to rape a person" meant to capture the person for the purpose of Enslavement , and was common in ancient warfare. In this context, the willingness of the victim is irrelevant to the categorization of the act as "rape". The "Rape of the Sabine Women " was a "rape" in this context. In Alexander Pope 's '' The Rape Of The Lock '', the word "rape" is used Hyperbolically in a similar context, exaggerating a trivial violation against a person. Though the sexual connotation is today dominant, the word "rape" is still sometimes used in a non-sexual context. For example, environmental destruction is sometimes described as "raping the earth", and the Rape Of Nanking describes a violation both against a town, as well as the people. In "the rape of the Silmarils " in J. R. R. Tolkien 's " The Silmarillion ", the word "rape" is used with its old meaning of "seizing and taking away". Sometimes, the word ''rape'' is used to Dysphemistically describe forms of non-sexual unwelcome conduct ("My team got raped on the field yesterday."). It is argued by some that this usage is demeaning or disempowering to the victims and survivors of real sexual rape, because it ends up by weakening the force and horror of the word. Such Metaphor ical and hyperbolic usages are common with other words ("It was absolute Torture " to mean ordinary Embarrassment ; or "I'm starving" to mean ordinary Hunger ), but survivors of rape and their supporters may find this type of usage deeply offensive, since it normalizes the term "rape" to cover mundane events. LAW Common law In the Common Law of the United Kingdom , Australia and the United States , "rape" traditionally describes the act of a man who forces a woman to have Sexual Intercourse with him. Until the late 20th Century , forced sex by a husband against his wife was not considered "rape", since a woman (for certain purposes) was not considered a separate Legal Person with the right of refusal, or sometimes was deemed to have given advanced consent to a life-long sexual relationship through the wedding vows. However, most Western countries have now Legislated against this exception. They now include Spousal Rape ( Vagina l intercourse), and acts of sexual violence, such as forced Anal Intercourse which were traditionally barred under Sodomy Law s, in their definitions of "rape". The term "rape" is sometimes considered "loaded", and many Jurisdiction s recognize, in its stead, broader categories of Sexual Assault or sexual Battery . U.S. law In the United States , there is no national rape law; instead each ''state'' drafts its own laws to deal with sexual aggression. More than half the states use narrowly defined, traditional laws that focus on the institutional, gender-specific (male perpetrator/female victim), and sexual nature of the crime. The remaining ''minority'' of states use liberalized laws that place greater emphasis on the individual, ''gender-neutral'', and violent nature of sexual coercion. However, even with all the advances that have taken place, current laws in approximately 12 states still have ''not'' acknowledged female-perpetrated sexual coercion as a potential variation of sexual aggression. Thus there is no single, universal, gender-neutral legal classification about what constitutes rape in the United States in 2006 . English law Under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, which came into force on May 1 , 2004 , rape in England and Wales was redefined from non-consensual vaginal or anal intercourse, and is now defined as non-consensual penis penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth of another person. The changes also made rape punishable with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Although a woman who forces a man to have sex cannot be prosecuted for rape under English law, if she helps a man commit a rape she can be prosecuted for the crime. A woman can also be prosecuted for causing a man to engage in sexual activity without his consent, a crime which also carries a maximum life sentence if it involves penetration of the mouth, anus or vagina. The statute also includes a new sexual crime, called "assault by penetration", which also has the same punishment as rape, and is committed when someone sexually penetrates the anus or vagina with a part of his or her body, or with an object, without that person's consent. United States: rape reporting According to USA Today reporter Kevin Johnson, "no other major category of crime - not murder, assault or robbery - has generated a more serious challenge of the credibility of national crime statistics" as has the crime of rape. He says: "There are good reasons to be cautious in drawing conclusions from reports on rape. The two most accepted studies available - the FBI's annual Uniform Crime Report and the Justice Department's annual National Crime Victimization Survey - each have widely acknowledged weaknesses."The FBI's report fails to reports rapes with male victims, both of adults and children, fails to report non-forcible rapes of either gender ''by either gender'', and reflects only the number of rapes reported to police. The Justice Departments survey solicits information from people 12 and older, excluding the youngest victims of rape (and Incest ). However, by using a random national telephone survey of households, the National Crime Victimization Survey could pick up rapes unreported to the police. In addition, since both official reports collect rape data from states with widely divergent standards and definitions on what constitutes rape, uniform reporting is impossible. The latest official attempt to improve the tracking of rape, the National Violence Against Women survey, first published in 1998 by the National Institute of Justice and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is sexist in it's very title. In addition, it's authors have acknowledged that they used different methodologies with "relatively high" margins of error. The 2000 report notes that "because annual rape victimization estimates (''nationwide'') are based on responses from ''only 24 women and 8 men'' (emphasis added) who reported being raped, they should be viewed with caution." The report goes on to note that it fails to report rapes perpetrated against children and adolescents, was well as those who were homeless, or living in institutions, group facilities, or in households without telephones. In addition, since there is no national standard, much less a ''uniform'' national standard for defining and reporting male-male and female-perpetrated rapes, since more than half the states use traditional gender-specific (limited to male perpetration against females) rape law, and since rape laws in approximately 12 states do not even acknowledge the ''possibility'', much less the occurrence, of female-perpetrated rape, the occurrences of these types of rape are likely to be significantly ''underreported'' as compared to the well-known but biased reports of rapes perpetrated by men against women. United States: rape statistics (Please expand with credible sourced stats that include all genders here. This article is about all rapes not just male-female rapes. We need reputable stats here and it is clear (see Reporting) that few ''reputable'' sources exist on this) TYPES OF RAPE Violent rape "Violent rape" is said to occur when violence beyond the rape itself is a part of the assault. This may include physical force, harm, threat of harm, including death threats, or threats against a family member. Violent rapes are likely to be reported (Bachman and Saltzman, 1995 ) more often than non-violent rapes on a proportional basis. However, many organisations and victims of rape consider any rape to be a violent crime, as rape is more about power and violence than sex (as confirmed by many rapists who used supposed "non-violent" rape). Rape of children by parents, elder relatives, and other responsible elders This form of rape is Incest when committed by the teen's parents or close relatives such as grandparents, aunts and uncles. It is considered incestuous in nature but not in form when committed by other elders, such as priests, nuns or other religious authorities, school teachers, or therapists, to name a few, on whom the child is dependent. Psychologists (see Incest ) estimate that 40 million adults, 15 million of those being men (Adams 1991), in the United States were sexually abused in childhood often by parents, close relatives and other elders — of ''both'' genders — on whom they were dependent. Children, including but not limited to adolescents, raped by their parents and other close elders are often called 'secret survivors' by psychologists, as they often are unable or unwilling to tell anyone about these rapes due to implicit or explicit threats by the adult rapist, fear of abandonment by the rapist, and/or overwhelming Shame . Since the signs of these insidious rapes are usually invisible except to trained professionals these children often suffer ongoing offenses in silence until independence from the adult rapist is attained. By that time, the Statute Of Limitations is often long-expired, the adult victim's Repressed Memories are often considered inadmissible as evidence and the teen-rapist is able to escape justice. In addition, rapists who rape their own children are considered less culpable, legally, than other rapists in ''most'' US states. Statutory rape See Also: Statutory rape National and/or regional Governments , citing an interest in protecting "young people" (variously defined but sometimes synonymous with Minor s), treat any sexual contact with such a person as an offense (not always categorised as "rape"), even if he or she agrees to the sexual activity. The offense is often based on a presumption that people under a certain age are unable to give informed consent. The age at which individuals are considered competent to give consent is called the Age Of Consent . The age set by each state varies in accordance with local standards, and range from 12 to 21. Sex which violates age-of-consent law, but is neither violent nor physically coerced, is sometimes described as " Statutory Rape ", the name of a legally-recognized category in the United States. The French film '' Strayed '', screened in 2003, depicts a rarely shown example of what would be called statutory rape, in some of the ''United States'', by an adult woman against a 17-year-old male adolescent. Acquaintance ("date") rape The term, "acquaintance rape" (or "date rape") refers to rape or non-consensual sexual activity between people who are already acquainted, or who know each other socially — friends, acquaintances, people on a date, or even people in an existing Romantic Relationship — where it is alleged that consent for sexual activity was not given, or was given under Duress . In most jurisdictions, there is no legal distinction between rape committed by a stranger, or by an acquaintance, friend or lover. (see also "Gray rape" below.) Spousal Rape Spousal rape is also called marital rape, wife rape, partner rape or intimate partner sexual assault (IPSA). Because there is a widely held view that a woman surrenders consent upon entering a relationship, the law has been slow to criminalize this form of rape/sexual assault. It is now a crime in most parts of the West, but exemptions still apply in some places; for example in some places a partner rape cannot be prosecuted if the couple were living together at the time of the assault. Research has established many times over that partner rape on women by men takes place at a high frequency: In 1975, the results of an American study on many rape situations were published. Diana E.H. Russell was so appalled by her findings on rape in marriage that she decided to conduct a research project on this area alone. From the 930 interviews conducted with women from a cross section of race and class, Russell concluded that rape in marriage was the most common yet most neglected area of sexual violence (Russell, Diana E.H. 'Rape in Marriage' MacMillan Publishing Company, USA 1990) In 1994, Patricia Easteal, then Senior Criminologist at the Australian Institute of Criminology, published the results of survey on sexual assault in many settings. The respondents were survivors of numerous forms of sexual assault. Of these, 10.4% had been raped by husbands or de-factos, with a further 2.3 per cent raped by estranged husbands/defactos. 5.5 percent were raped by non-cohabiting boyfriends (Easteal, P. "Voices of the Survivors", Spinifex Press, North Melbourne, 1994). David Finkelhor & Kersti Yllo's famous 1985 study estimated that 10 to 14 per cent of all married American women have been or will be raped by their spouses .(Finkelhor, D. and Yllo, K., "License to Rape", The Free Press, New York 1985) In the UK, statistics disseminated by the Rape Crisis Federation yield the information that the most common rapists are current and ex-husbands or partners (Myhill & Allen, Rape and Sexual Assault of Women: Findings from the British Crime Survey ) Other figures estimate that one in seven women is raped by a sexual intimate. For a brief overview view of partner rape, see STAR Library - Marital Rape Spousal rape also occurs in lesbian and gay relationships. It is not known to what extent women sexually assault male partners. Due to popular stereotypes of "real" rape, it is often assumed that if a couple have been sexually intimate, a partner rape is not as traumatic as other types of rape. However the research of Finkelhor and Yllo (1985) and Bergen (1996) reveals that victims of marital/partner rape suffer longer lasting trauma than victims of stranger rape. One reason for this is thought to be the lack of social validation that prevents a victim from getting access to support. Domestic violence services have made inroads in addressing this problem. Gang rape Group rape (also known as "gang" or "pack" rape) occurs when a group of people participate in the rape of a single victim. 10% to 20% involve more than one attacker. It is far more damaging to the victim, and in some jurisdictions, is punished more severely than rape by a single person. The term "gang Bang" was a synonym for gang rape when public discussion of sexual activity in general was Taboo ; however in the advent of the porn industry and relaxed sexual tensions, it is now often used as a slang term for consensual Group Sex . The term "group rape" is now often preferred to "gang rape", as the word "gang" can have racial connotations when used against minority defendants. According to sexual crime profiler Roy Hazelwood , gang rape "involves three or more offenders and you always have a leader and a reluctant participant. Those are extremely violent, and what you find is that they're playing for each other's approval. It gets into a pack mentality and can be horrendous." "Gray rape" There is often more difficulty in securing conviction against an assailant who is known by the victim at the time. This is due to the "gray" nature of the situation. In what is required for non-consensual sexual activity is often harder to meet (or easier to deny) than when two strangers meet, or where there has been violence. In general, evidence suggests that 80% of all rapists know their victims {Link without Title} . RAPE BY GENDER Rape of females by males The rape of females by males (male-female) is the best known and most reported form of rape in the , the rape of females by males is also sometimes mistaken as the ''only'' form of rape. All forms of rape (including male on male, female-male, and female-female) are valid and, according to many, deserve investigation by researchers, reporting by crime reporters and treatment by therapists. One common false assumption about the rape of females is that a woman who lubricates, experiences arousal or even orgasms is consenting to her rape. A woman's physiological responses to sexual contact are involuntary and in no way imply consent. A woman can become aroused, lubricate, and even orgasm ''against her will'' in a rape. Rape of males by males It is less well-known that many men and boys have been raped by other males. Male on male rape is common in Incest , incestuous rape, and other situations, (such as prison or other similar settings) where men and boys are dependent on elder males and/or are unable to escape stronger males. Since the United States Uniform Crime Report statistics are considered unreliable (see discussion(s) above) regarding rape in general, regarding the gender the victims (in some states rape of males is considered impossible by the law), and regarding the gender of the victimizer, no ''reliable'' statistics on male-male rape can be taken from these crime statistics, ''despite'' their official nature. What can be estimated from the so-called Uniform Crime Report rape statistics is that rape of males, by ''both'' genders, represents a ''minimum'' of about 10% of all rapes. However, since there is no known ''uniform'' gender-neutral data on all forms of rape it impossible to distinguish how many males were raped by ''males'' versus those ''males'' raped by ''females''. Men, young men and boys suffer rape-related Trauma by rape and sexual assault just as female victims do. In addition, due to male socialization to consider all ''male-male'' sexual contact to be shameful, to 'be tough and take it like a man' and to eschew victimhood in all its forms, many males who were survivors of male rape choose to suffer in silent shame rather than risk reporting the crime. These victims consider the shame of disclosure and their likely Shunning by other males, as worse than the crime itself; a form of Double-bind Shame similar to the double-bind blame that male-female rape victims often face. Incest by fathers or incestuous rape of male children by adult men in responsible roles is an especially insidious, shaming, and traumatic form of sexual crime against males that has gained widespread national attention in the United States due to the recent Roman Catholic Sex Abuse Cases . Male-male rape often does deep damage to or destroys the survivor's image of himself as a man which may cause him to feel helpless and alone among other men. When a male is raped (by a male or female) the ''involuntary'' Physiological response of Erection , Orgasm or enjoyment cannot be taken to imply that the act was welcomed by the victim. A capable assailant, male or female, can induce these involuntary physical responses in the majority of males with force and/or with deception. Likewise, in Incest or incestuous male-male rape, 'voluntary' initiation, 'voluntary' participation, and involuntary enjoyment ''by the victim'', do not imply that the sexual assault is consensual, less loathsome, or less traumatic to the victim. Many people mistake these ''involuntary'' physiological effects, falsely, as indications of consent, when in fact the male rape victims have no more control over his ''involuntary'' physiological responses than do female rape victims. Male-on-male rape does not imply Homosexuality . This is a common misperception. People often view the male aggressor as a homosexual, and may think of the recipient as having homosexual tendencies too, especially if he shows signs of sexual stimulation during the experience. Research indicates that the most common form of male-male rape is group rape by other males who rape males who are considered less than 'real' men or latent homosexuals; therefore it is a mistake to perceive the ''rapists'' as homosexuals in these cases too. A male rape victim will often experience ''involuntary'' erection when forcibly penetrated by rapists of ''either'' gender but that does ''not'' mean that he is homosexual or that he enjoys the rape. To ''falsely'' label a male rape victim 'homosexual' just because his rapist was male can cause the rape victim double-bind shame in cultures where discrimination against homosexuals is rampant. Rape of males by females Women also can commit an act of rape with force or deception to make a man (or adolescent) engage in a non-consensual penetrative sexual act. According to Court TV's Crime Library, women commit about 10% of all sexual offenses and their abuse often involves their own child or children which is Incest . Several widely publicized cases of female-male statutory rape in the United States involved school teachers raping their teenage male students. One infamous example involved elementary school teacher Mary Kay Letourneau , who had two children with one of her students, who was 13 when she began her repeated rapes. Rape of males by females is widely, but incorrectly, considered impossible because male erectile response is seen as voluntary, when, in fact, it is involuntary. 1 Therefore, male victims of rape by females often face a social, political, and legal double-standard. Female rapists are usually seen as ''much'' less culpable than male rapists by the courts. In addition, male victims of female rape often endure a double-bind because men are considered to always ''want'' sex with a woman which means that female-on-male rape can be seen, by others, as desirable. In addition, since rape by females is ''much'' less well known, the male victims often find little support from rape crisis counselors. Finally, since the incidence of female-on-male rape is on record at much higher rates (31% compared to 10%) in Canada, it is likely being substantially under-reported in the US. In many countries, male rape is legally classified under a different law or name. However, the nature of the incident, and its consequences, are similar. It is said that male rape is taken less seriously as a result of the Stereotypical views held about males in many societies, including modern Western society. Men's rights Lobbyist s are pushing for tougher male rape laws, and have gained some success. Rape of females by females Female-female rape is just beginning to be researched by psychologists. What constitutes female-female rape is defined on a state by state basis in the United States (see Law above). Female-female rape can occur against heterosexual females, by mothers against their daughter(s) ( Incest ) or in incestuous rapes by other responsible female elders, against lesbians alone and against lesbians by their lesbian lovers. As in male-male rape, the victim of female-female rape is not necessarily homosexual simply because she is the target of assault by a woman. The attacker is not necessarily homosexual either. As in male-male prison rape, a number of authors have noted that women rape other women in prison. Lesbian sexual assault is often a peripheralized subject in today's society. Lori Girshick explores the taboo subject in her book ''Woman-to-Woman Sexual Violence: Does she call it rape''. The Network/La Red is a Non-profit Organization dedicated to the issue of lesbian domestic violence. Another taboo, heretofore concealed and especially terrible type of female-female rape is the rape of daughters by mothers or other female caregivers (see parental and sexual abuse. It is estimated in the United States that 3-10% of all serious sexual offenses are female-female in nature. Researchers in the counseling professions believe that female-on-female sexual offenses are significantly under-reported. There is also evidence to suggest that sexual offenses committed by females against females are actively concealed and/or denied by both the offenders themselves and the wider population. However, due to the lack of substantial evidence provided in these cases, female on female rape is often misconstrued as actual rape when in fact it is only statutory assult in most states. These states include California, New York, Flordia and South Dakota. SOME ASPECTS OF RAPE False "men do and women don't" stereotypes In ''Sexually Aggressive Women'', 13 contributors examine false but pervasive gender stereotypes that hamper sound rape research, that create false impressions about rape in legal, political and social circles, and that prevent acknowledgement that females oppress, dominate and sexually offend too. One contributor notes that "Ignoring sexually aggressive women ignores that harm they cause to victims, whether male or female, and could even exacerbate victims' distress by implying that their experiences are invalid or trivial." Another contributor quotes Bell Hooks who wrote: "Emphasizing paradigms of domination that call attention to woman's capacity of dominate is one way to deconstruct and challenge the simplistic notion that man is the enemy, woman the victim: the notion that men have always been the oppressors. Such thinking enables us to examine our role as woman in the perpetration and maintenance of systems of domination."The contributor states that research on female forms of oppression would require "acknowledging the guilt-inducing fact that not only are women oppressed but women also oppress others." Double standards Professionals and researchers who deal with rape-victims have noted a number of social, political, and legal double standards about rape:
Drugging Hypnotic agents such as Flunitrazepam ( Rohypnol ) and GHB , colloquially referred to as " Date Rape Drug s," have been used by rapists to render their victims unconscious before raping them. According to the DEA : :"Victims may not be aware that they ingested a drug at all. GHB and its Analogue s are invisible when dissolved in water, and are odorless. They are somewhat Salt ish in taste, but are indiscernible when dissolved in Beverage s such as Soda s, Liquor , or Beer ." {Link without Title} According to the National Institute On Drug Abuse : :"Rohypnol can incapacitate victims and prevent them from resisting sexual assault. It can produce " Anterograde Amnesia ," which means that individuals may not remember events they experienced while under the effects of the drug." {Link without Title} The Sedative effects of Rohypnol begin to appear approximately 15–20 minutes after the Drug is ingested. The effects typically last from four to six hours after administration of the drug, but some cases have been reported in which the effects were experienced 12 or more hours after administration. In recent news it has been discovered that scientists can now detect flunitrazepam and related compounds in urine at least up to 5 days after administration of a single dose of Rohypnol and up to a month in hair. {Link without Title} These drugs are extremely dangerous, and may kill or render the victim Comatose . It is imperative that any investigation into the suspected use of date rape drugs involve the immediate carrying out of a blood test, as waiting too long to test for the presence of drugs may cause False Negative s. However, trying to deduce whether date rape drugs have been used from the symptoms is an approach that can cause False Positive s. In 2003 , when the media were reporting a drink-spiking Epidemic in Perth, Western Australia , 44 women had their blood tested because they believed they had been the victims of drink-spiking. The West Australian Chemistry Centre tested the blood samples and in these 44 cases, the only substance found in the victim's system was excessive alcohol. Police said that the blood-alcohol level of most of the subjects was significantly higher than what the women had themselves expected, based on their assessment of the amount of drinks consumed, and commented: :"While we can't dismiss all cases, the results suggest that a fair proportion of drink spiking is just an urban Myth ... It seems that a proportion of young women are getting incredibly Intoxicated , and using drink spiking as an excuse to explain behaviour they are not happy with." {Link without Title} However, the legal definition of rape in countries such as the . Testing kits that claim to detect GHB, Ketamine and Benzodiazepine s such as Rohypnol in seconds are commercially available under names such as "The Drink Detective". Custodial and prison rape See Also: Custodial rape Research carried out by Cindy Struckman-Johnson and David Struckman-Johnson of the is routine in US prisons. Women prisoners are especially vulnerable to assault by guards and other staff members, and the incidence in the United States has been denounced by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Prisoners are also vulnerable to rape from other prisoners. Rape and sexual torture In circumstances where Torture is being employed as a means of military or governmental policy, the rape of both female and male Detainee s is a common element of that Torture . It is used often as a means to "soften" the detainees for interrogation or to intimidate them into compliance. In societies with strong social Taboo s on sexuality, sexual torture is commonly used to destroy the credibility and influence of Political Dissident s. Rape under such circumstances often has even more profoundly negative Psychological effects than under circumstances in which sexual assaults usually happen. Sexual torture also occurs far from government and military settings. The infliction of torment is often consciously ''intended'' in violent rapes by both genders. See also Humiliation , Abu Ghraib Prisoner Abuse , Nanjing Massacre and Psychology Of Torture . Sex trafficking See Also: Trafficking in human beings Human trafficking, or '''sex trafficking''' (as the majority of victims are women or children forced into Prostitution ) is a term used to define the recruiting, harboring, obtaining, transportation of a person by use of force, Fraud , or Coercion for the purpose of subjecting them to involuntary acts, the most common being forced commercial sexual exploitation (forced prostitution). Human trafficking is not the same as people smuggling. A smuggler will facilitate illegal entry into a country for a fee, but on arrival at their destination, the smuggled person is free; the trafficking victim is enslaved. Victims do not agree to be trafficked — they are tricked, lured by false promises, or forced. Traffickers use coercive tactics including deception, fraud, intimidation, isolation, threat and use of physical force, debt bondage or even force-feeding with drugs of abuse to control their victims. Women are typically recruited with promises of good jobs in other countries or provinces, and, lacking better options at home, agree to migrate, not knowing they will be forced into prostitution. Due to the illegal nature of trafficking, the exact extent is unknown. A US Government report published in 2003, estimates that 800,000–900,000 people worldwide are trafficked across borders each year. Consent There is considerable debate as to what constitutes proper and complete Consent in a sexual relationship. How explicit should consent be, how often should it be established, and what constitutes Diminished Capacity (usually due to drugs or alcohol) are all subjects of some disagreement. These debates take place both on Moral and Ethical grounds, and as a legal issue, since rape can only be convicted as a crime with intent in many jurisdictions, and the erroneous belief of consent is a common defense. Victim blaming " Victim Blaming " is holding the victim of a crime to be in whole or in part responsible for what has happened to them. In the context of rape, this concept refers to popular attitudes that certain victim behaviours (such as Flirting , or wearing sexually-provocative clothing) may encourage rape. In extreme cases, victims are said to have "asked for it", simply by not behaving demurely. In most Western countries, the defense of Provocation is not accepted as a Mitigation for rape. It has been proposed that one cause of victim-blaming is the " {Link without Title} shows that victim-blaming concepts are at least partially accepted in many countries. In some countries, victim-blaming is more common, and women who have been raped are sometimes deemed to have behaved improperly. Often, these are countries where there is a significant social divide between the freedoms and status afforded to men and women. A more mainstream view is that everybody has the theoretical right to feel safe at all times, but that the responsibility of preventing and minimising the risk of being in a dangerous situation is largely up to the individual. On this basis, the question is not whether the victim "deserved" to be raped, because nobody "deserves" to be the victim of crime but rather whether the individual did choose to prevent or minimize the risk of being in a dangerous situation and/or the risk of harm in a dangerous situation. Under cases of alleged date rape, however, the situation is different. Because the question at hand is whether or not the incident was consensual, or whether the alleged victim encouraged the accused or gave implied consent, becomes the critical consideration. As such, arguments about the victim's conduct are an accepted element of an Affirmative Defense . In the United States, rape is unique in that it is the only crime in which there are statutory protections designed in favor of the victim (known as " Rape Shield Laws "). These were enacted in response to the common defense tactic of "putting the victim on trial". Typical rape shield laws prohibit cross-examination of the victim with respect to issues, such as his or her prior sexual history, or the manner in which he or she was dressed at the time of the rape. Most states and the federal rules, however, provide exceptions to the rape shield law where evidence of prior sexual history is used to provide an alternative explanation for physical evidence, where the defendant and the victim had a prior consensual sexual relationship, and where exclusion of evidence would violate the defendant's constitutional rights. Sexual fantasy Psychologists have determined that Rape Fantasies are relatively common across populations. Many people assume that people aroused by rape fantasies must be more likely than others to commit the actual act, or that women with rape fantasies actually want to become victims of violent sexual assault. This does not correspond with observed scientific evidence, however; while rapists usually fantasize about rape, so do normal, psychologically-healthy people. Criminal Psychologists would be more concerned about a person's tendencies if that person was ''incapable'' of achieving sexual gratification through fantasy. EFFECTS OF RAPE A proportion of violent sexual assaults end with the death or serious injury of the victim. Other consequences can include Pregnancy or Sexually Transmitted Disease s. Because of the sexual nature of rape crimes, the most common effect of rape on victims, however, is serious Psychological Trauma such as PTSD, OCD or dissociation. This is especially true in societies with strong sexual customs and taboos. For example, a woman (and especially a Virgin ) who is raped may be deemed by society to be "damaged": she may suffer isolation, be prohibited to marry, be divorced if she was married, or even killed. She may also feel "dirty", as if the crime was her fault. In the past, survivors of rape and sexual assault were often diagnosed with . The reactions are very similar to those that would be experienced by a survivor of any other traumatizing experience, and sometimes result in a diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder . These traumatic responses are often cited as one of the reasons why rape goes unreported. The process to denounce and eventually convict an offender is often hindered by similar psychological effects. Victims frequently feel shame when describing what has happened (especially if the victim is male, or if a female victim must report the incident to a male law officer). Also, the intimate questions and Medical Examination s required for prosecution can make the victim uncomfortable. In societies that do not accord equal Civil Rights to women and men, this process is even more difficult for female victims. In societies where denial, sexual stereotyping and pervasive double standards exist, victims of male-male, female-male and female-female rape often suffer double victimization when they seek support from legal, medical, and psychological professionals. Medical emergency information According to the and reports it. A victim who seeks immediate medical attention, will not only allow prompt treatment for possibly life-threatening injuries and diseases, but will also preserve evidence. Many recommend that victims should not bathe or clean themselves before the examination, not only to prevent the loss of physical evidence, but also to not delay medical attention. Physical injuries such as Gynecologic , Rectal or Internal Hemorrhage may have resulted. Additionally, Emergency Contraception and preventative treatment against Sexually Transmitted Diseases may be required, in particular Prophylactic treatments to prevent HIV Infection . In many locations, Emergency Medical Technician s, emergency room nurses and doctors are trained to help rape victims. Some Emergency Room s have Rape Kit s which are used to collect evidence. AIDS Prophylaxis is possible within 48 hours, but is not always deemed appropriate, given:
This would usually be a clinical decision based upon circumstances. {Link without Title} RAINN Some groups also operate Hotline s to offer advice and psychological First Aid . In the United States, one of the most prominent hotlines for rape victims is operated by the organization, RAINN (The Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network). RAINN is the only Toll-free , completely confidential 24-hour hotline that provides this service in America. Their telephone number is 1-800-656-HOPE. Secondary victimization Secondary victimization is the re-traumatization of the sexual assault, abuse or rape victim. It is an indirect result of assault which occurs through the responses of individuals and institutions to the victim. The types of secondary victimization include victim blaming, inappropriate behavior or language by medical personnel and by other organizations with access to the victim post assault. (Campbell et. al., 1999) Secondary victimization is especially rampant in cases of statutory rape. Often the minor does not feel victimized by the sexual contact, but only begins to feel like a victim when faced by the treatment they receive at the hands of law enforcement and others. CAUSES OF RAPE According to rape researchers, the prevention of rape is likely to be successful to the extent that the causes are known. They also note that few topics generate as much heated speculation with so little empirical knowledge than research on the causes of rape. However, empirical research is beginning to replace political rhetoric with peer-reviewed science. As of 2006, there is no ''scientific'' theory that explains all forms of ''male-female'' rape much less the other types of rape studied in this article. Given the many complex forms and modalities of rape, more than one empirical theory may be needed to explain ''all'' the causes of rape. In addition, there are pervasive double standards and widespread social and political biases against even ''doing'' research into male-male, female-male, and female-female rape in US university settings (Anderson et al 1998). Finally, there are significant socio-political prohibitions that interfere with research of the perpetrators themselves (Prior, 1996). The presence of all these prejudices, omissions and obstacles vi a vi objective scientific investigation tends to make recent rape research quite questionable at best and absurd at worst. However a number of correlations have been found between rape and other contributing factors that, ''while not in and of themselves direct causes of rape'', might point to possible causes. According to the CDC there are certain vulnerability factors seen in high risk-victim groups. Rape ''victim'' vulnerabilities include prior sexual abuse as a minor, being female, being under the age of 18, being Native American and alcohol or drug use. Being the victim of child sexual abuse doubles the likelihood of adult sexual victimization (Parillo et. al., 2003), (Sarkar, N.; Sarkar, R. 2005). There are also certain characteristics common to high-risk (male) perpetrators of child sex abuse such as themselves being victims of child sexual abuse, the repeated violation of their interpersonal boundaries as children, and unresolved crises in adulthood (Pryor, 1996). One study of (male) serial rapists found that over 60 percent of them had ''themselves'' been sexually abused by adult females before the age of 10-12(?) (Lamb 1999 (pull in researcher)). These correlations, by themselves, mean nothing, but could provide possible paths for further rape research to those researchers searching for universal explanations for the causes of rape. Researcher Lee Ellis listed three theories about why ''males rape females'' and analysed their associated hypotheses against the evidence. In his ''Theories of Rape'', he named the then (1989) known theories for the causes of ''male-female'' rape as:
In 2005, a mixed-sex group of Canadian research psychologists published ''The Causes of Rape'', a wide ranging scientific study of ''male-female'' rape causality along with research on forced copulation in animals. They did no research on the causes of male-male, female-male, and female-female rape. However, they did note that "Few topics have generated more heated debate in the social science literature." than investigating the propensity of ''males'' to rape ''females''. They note that "Not all men are inclined to rape" and ask "What is it about the characteristics of some men, and the interaction of these characterisitics with certain contexts, that increases the likelihood of rape?". They go on to pose three possible groups of (male-female) rape causes with a fourth possible grouping of less common causes as follows:
RAPE AND PUNISHMENT Punishment of assailants Most societies consider rape to be a grave offense, and punish it accordingly. Punishment for rape in most countries today is imprisonment, but until the late twentieth century, some states of the U.S. , for instance, could apply the Death Penalty in cases of aggravated rape, (in Louisiana, USA, for example) indicating the severity with which the crime was viewed (the death penalty is still in use in countries with a significant social divide between the freedoms and status afforded to men and women). Castration is sometimes a punishment for rape and, controversially, some U.S. jurisdictions allow shorter sentences for sex criminals who agree to voluntary " Chemical Castration ." In the Southern States of the U.S., the charge of rape was often used to justify Vigilante groups (" Lynch Mob s") that would seize and kill men accused of rape, without Due Process or Trial . Victims of Lynching were typically, though not always, African American . (One historic exception was the lynching of Leo Frank , a Jewish American.) Members of the lynch mobs were rarely prosecuted or punished for these mob killings. In some such communities, any sexual interaction between an African-American male and a White ( Caucasian ) female was viewed as rape, which resulted in a large number of (presumably) innocent men, being murdered. This resulted from the fact that it was commonly believed that no White female would ever consent to sexual relations with a Black man. Rape of Black women by White men was a practice largely ignored or simply tolerated for many years, and local governments rarely punished such rapists in these cases. Prison sentences for rape are not uniform. A study made by the U.S. Department Of Justice of prison releases in 1992 , involving about 80 percent of the prison population, found that the average sentence for convicted rapists was 9.8 years, while the actual time served was 5.4 years. This follows the typical pattern for violent crimes in the US, where those convicted typically serve no more than half of their sentence Between 2002 and 2003 , more than one in ten convicted rapists in Australia served a wholly suspended sentence, and the average total effective sentence for rape was seven years [http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/10/15/1097784044926.html?from=storylhs . Punishment of victims While the practice is condemned as barbaric by many present-day societies, some societies punish the victims of rape as well as the perpetrators. According to such cultures, being raped dishonors the victim and, in many cases, the victim's family. In some cultures rape victims are sometimes killed to restore honor to the family's name. In the Shakespeare Drama '' Titus Andronicus '', Titus Andronicus kills his raped, maimed daughter in what he believes to be a Mercy Killing . Rape and cultural views Related article: Honor Killing Certain cultures, often Patriarchal , have historically promoted a system of Honor , dishonor and shame, which was applied with particular strictness to females. A victim of rape would be considered to have lost her honorable reputation and place in society, a loss of honor which entailed Shame on the woman's Family group as well. In early Ancient Rome , Ancient China , and other cultures, a pressure has existed which has led women to commit suicide after becoming victims of rape. The iconic Roman instance is that of Lucretia . Likewise, suicide of female rape victims for reasons of shame is also historically documented in Chinese and Japanese culture {Link without Title} . Rape as punishment Though modern societies claim to recognize the practice as barbaric, rape itself is sometimes used as a form of punishment. The victim of the rape is commonly a female relative of the person targeted for retaliation. In June 2002 , a Pakistan i woman named Mukhtaran Bibi was gang-raped by a vigilante mob after her brother was (falsely) accused of rape himself. The Pakistani government, along with local religious officials, condemned this action and sentenced the rapists to death. Many such events are reported in Pakistan and other countries. In some Dictator ships, rape is, or was, used as a method to retaliate against, or to intimidate their political enemies. There are numerous allegations that this took place under the former regime of Iraq i dictator, Saddam Hussein . In the Abu Ghraib prison, US soldiers were using similar sexual intimidation and the threat of rape as a means of psychological torture to frighten their mostly male and muslim prisoners. After the media exposed this in its coverage of the Abu Gharib Scandal, The US government tried several junior personnel involved. There is suspicion that some rape incidents in prisons are permitted through timely guard absences (at showers, for instance). Motivations for this range from punishing troublesome prisoners to providing a Deterrent to those considering a Criminal Act , particularly among those who have little to lose from Incarceration (e.g. homeless persons in winter). RAPE AND HUMAN RIGHTS Probably for much of human history, rape, violence, and war have often occurred in connection with one another. In the Twentieth Century , the use of rape as a "weapon of war" has been well documented and addressed by NGO s as well as the United Nations , {Link without Title} and national governments. RAPISTS Male rapist profiles Dr. A. Nicholas Groth, author of ''Men Who Rape: The Psychology of the Offender'', described four types of deliberate rapists, based on their motivations and behavior patterns. Forensic Scientist s, Criminologists , and Law Enforcement agencies often use these profiles to analyze rapists, and prevent future rapes. Since rapes are predominantly perpetrated by men, a male perpetrator is assumed in these profiles:
:Usually, he will select and Stalk a victim before committing the crime. The victim is usually someone whom he knows, eg. a neighbor or work acquaintance. Power-reassurance rapists often force the victim to emulate Foreplay , and take "trophies" of the rape; they may even record the event in a personal Journal . Power-reassurance rapists tend to be the least violent type of rapists, often Fantasizing about consensual sexual relationships with women, rather than violent conquests.
Female rapist and abuser profiles Court TV's Crime Library lists 6 types of female-male sex offenders based on research by psychiatrist Janet Warren and psychologist Julia Hislop.
Warning signs for potential male rapists It is very difficult to predict who may or may not be a potential rapist because rapists have many Personality Type s, and use many different methods. However, certain behavioral characteristics have been observed in some rapists. These should be used cautiously as "warning signs", since non-rapists and other innocent people may also exhibit similar behaviours:
Scientific research does not support the assumption that rape fantasies are warning signs of a potential rapist. While rapists were almost invariably found to have rape fantasies, they were a very small minority compared to a far larger number of psychologically healthy and normal men who had rape fantasies but did not commit rape. Warning signs for potential female rapists According to Network LaRed woman on woman rape and domestic violence abusers exhibit certain behavior, including:
This behaviour includes, but is not limited to, mothers or care givers who abuse their children. REPORTING Underreporting According to the 1999 United States National Crime Victimization Survey , only 39% of rapes and sexual assaults were reported to law enforcement officials. For male rape, less than 10% are believed to be reported. The most common reasons given by victims for not reporting rapes are the belief that it is a personal or private matter, and that they fear Reprisal from the assailant. Fisher found that: : "... many women do not characterize their sexual victimizations as a crime for a number of reasons (such as embarrassment, not clearly understanding the legal definition of rape, or not wanting to define someone they know who victimized them as a 'rapist') or because they blame themselves for their sexual assault." Rape-related Advocacy Group s have suggested several Tactic s to encourage the reporting of sexual assaults, most of which aim at lessening the psychological trauma, often suffered by rape victims following their assault. Many police departments now assign female police officers to deal with rape cases. Advocacy groups also argue for the preservation of the victim's privacy during the Legal Process ; it is standard practice among mainstream American News Media not to divulge the names of alleged rape victims in news reports. Psychologists who research female-male, and female-female rape suggest that significant under-reporting of these crimes is occurring. They suggest that the double standards in perception that exist between male and female rape, the taboo nature (see Incest ) of some female rapes, and the lack of rapist-gender reporting in many jurisdictions contribute to this alleged under reporting in the United States. Canadian researcher, Linda Halliday-Sumner suggests from the slowing emerging information about female sex crimes, that women commit about one third (or about 33%) of all sexual offenses. However, she notes that in Canada, just 19 of 4545 (or just 0.4%) of federal prisoners ''convicted'' of sex offenses were women in 1997. Overreporting and false reporting A 1997 article in the Columbia Journalism Review dealing with the debate surrounding false reporting, noted that wildly different figures, from 2% to 85% of all rape reports, have been presented: :"... one explanation for such a wide range in the s for women who have been raped worry it may also taint the credibility of the genuine victims of sexual assault." {Link without Title} In 1994 , Dr. Eugene J. Kanin of Purdue University investigated the incidences, in one small Urban community, of false rape allegations made to the police between 1978 and 1987 . The falseness of the allegations was not decided by the police, or by Dr. Kanin; they were "... declared false only because the complainant admitted they are false." The number of false rape allegations in the studied period was 45; this was 41% of the 109 total complaints filed in this period. In Dr. Kanin's research, the complainants who made false allegations did so (by their own statements during recantation) for three major reasons:
Dr. Kanin's small study is widely reported and quoted. In her work, "The Legacy of the Prompt Complaint Requirement, Corroboration Requirement, and Cautionary Instructions on Campus Sexual Assault", Michelle J. Anderson of the 's 1996 Uniform Crime Report states that 8% of reports of forcible rape were determined to be unfounded upon investigation {Link without Title} , but that percentage does not include cases where an accuser fails or refuses to cooperate in an investigation, or drops the charges. See Also: Gary Dotson SOCIOBIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF RAPE See Also: Sociobiological theories of rape Some animals appear to exhibit behaviors which resemble rape in humans, in particular combining sexual intercourse with violent assault, such as are observed in ) Some Sociobiologists argue that our ability to understand rape, and thereby prevent and treat it, is severely compromised because its basis in human Evolution has been ignored. They argue that rape, as a Reproductive strategy, is encountered in many instances in the Animal Kingdom , including among the Great Apes , and presumably also among early humans. Some studies indicate that it is an attempt by the male of the species to increase his reproductive fitness when he is lacking in ability to persuade the female by non-violent means (Thornhill & Thornhill, 1983 ). Such sociobiological theories, regarding rape as Adaptive , are highly controversial, and are not accepted by all mainstream scientists. watcher", claims that rape is not only not an evolutionary benefit to the rapist, but that it is strongly maladaptive, and therefore selected against. THE ROLE OF CONTROL AND LOSS OF PRIVACY IN RAPE Rape has been regarded as "a crime of violence and control" since the 1970s . According to psychological analysis literature, "control" is a key feature in most definitions of Privacy :
Control is important in providing:
Violation of privacy or "control", come in many forms, sexual assault, and the resulting psychological traumas, being one of the most explicit forms. Many sexual assault survivors suffer from eating disorders, such as Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia , which also center around control issues. In some ways, therefore, it makes more sense to look at the issue of sexual assault as an invasion of privacy: : "The more comfortable a person is with talking about invasion of privacy and in insisting that he or she has privacy that deserves respect, the clearer that person’s understanding of rape will be…" (Mclean, D. 1995) Consequently, it is important to be aware of the approach of this subject of rape through the concept of privacy because of the historical background and the need to bypass certain Stigma s. QUOTES The Supreme Court Of California had this to say on a case involving a woman who was raped by a police officer: : "Along with other forms of sexual assault, it belongs to that class of indignities against the person that cannot ever be fully righted, and that diminishes all Humanity ." :: '' Mary M. v. City of Los Angeles '' 54 Cal.3d 202,222 (1991) Cal.Rptr. 99; 814 P.2d 1341 One Supreme Court Of The United States opinion included: : "We do not discount the seriousness of rape as a crime. It is highly reprehensible, both in a moral sense and in its almost total Contempt for the personal integrity and Autonomy of the female victim and for the latter's privilege of choosing those with whom intimate relationships are to be established. Short of Homicide , it is the "ultimate violation of self." It is also a violent crime because it normally involves force, or the threat of force or intimidation, to overcome the will and the capacity of the victim to resist. Rape is very often accompanied by physical injury to the female and can also inflict mental and psychological damage. Because it undermines the community's sense of security, there is public injury as well." :: '' Coker v. Georgia '' 433 U.S. 584 at 597-598 (1977) L.Ed.2d 982, 97 S.Ct. 2861 (plur. opn. of White, J.; conc. and dis. opn. of Powell, J.) Researcher Metzger wrote: : "Rape is loss. Like death, it is best treated with a period of mourning and grief. We should develop social ceremonies for rape, Ritual s, that, like Funeral s and Wake s, would allow the mourners to recover the spirits that the rapist, like death, steals. The social community is the appropriate center for the restoration of spirit, but the rape victim is usually shamed into silence or self-imposed isolation." (Metzger, D. (1976). "It is always the woman who is raped." American Journal of Psychiatry, 133 (4), 405-408) REFERENCES SEE ALSO
FURTHER READING Academic and reference books Reference books
Secondary victimization and victim blame
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