Simone Woodard

Mr. Kays
5 December 2016
English 102 H
Short Report

Why women are afraid to report sexual assault and harassment? How is it
affecting our society?

Sexual assault comes in many different forms, but has one consistent aspect.
It is never the victim's fault. The term sexual assault means sexual contact or
behavior that occurs without content from the victim. There are different forms of
sexual assault but neither reigns supreme over the other. The most physical form of
sexual assault is penetration of the body (a.k.a rape). Yes rape is a form of sexual
assault, however not all sexual assault is considered rape. Rape is a legal definition
used in describing penetration of the body without verbal or written consent. The
FBI defines rape as penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with
any body part or object, or oral penetration by another sex organ of another person
without consent of the victim. Rape can occur by anyone and anyone from a person
walking down the street to a family member, anyone can be a victim. Rape in a
worse form is known as date rape. Date rape usually occurs by someone you have
come in contact with before, or are close to. Rape often occurs in bars and involved

some sort of drug to alter the victims judgment into being easily manipulated and
pliable. Rape is never usually about sex, it often stems from the want of power and
control over another person. In every case, the rapist is always wrong. There is no
such thing as asking for it.

Some of the worst forms of sexual assault are against children and the
elderly. Both are essentially helpless groups of people and do not really has much
of an ability to defend themselves. Usually abuse of this nature occurs more than
once and lasts for a long time. Sometimes years go by without anyone being aware
of the abuse. In some cases children do not really understand that they are being
abused. Events like this can lead to destructive behavior later in life. It causes trust
issues towards adults because the victim feels betrayed and violated by someone
who they were supposed to respect and hold at a higher standard. Children who
experience rape or attempted rape in adolescence or in their younger years of life
are 14% more likely to experience rape or sexual harassment in their first year of
college. Those who have been abused in the past have almost a 1000% chance of
the abuse recurring at sometime in their life. Long Term effects include anxiety,
insomnia and most common alcohol and or drug abuse. Usually children develop
low self-esteem and feel worthless. Children often have an abnormal or a distorted
view of sex and have a distrust of adults or irrational fear of them.

Next to Children and the elderly, college students have the highest percent of
sexual abuse and or harassment. As a young woman, I have to live with the fear
that one day I may unsuspectingly be approached my a man that just doesnt get
it. In social groups on campus women have heard the guys they call their friends
objectify other women around campus. Regarding them as sex objects or wanting
to use them just to get a quick nut. One cannot help but think that if they were not
friends, would she be the unlucky girl who gets to be the topic of conversation? We
as girls should not have had to grow up with my mother telling us things like
make sure you always go in groups, anything can happen or the famous line all
these boys want is to get in your pants and realize that those lines that we think are
so silly coming out of our mothers mouths, actually hold clout.

When the word rape is said, often times it is only a young woman who we
picture being the victim, however that is not always the case. Men and little boys
are also victims of rape and sexual related violence. Surprisingly, a significant
portion of victims of rape or sexual violence happens to be men. 8% of the male
population has experienced sexual violence. While 8% sounds miniscule compared
to the 78% of college women, it is still very prevalent and very underreported.
Since society thinks that all men think about is sex and want it all the time, they
also think that any form of sexual act by essentially anyone would be pleasing too.
Contrary to popular belief, an erection is not an invitation to sex. Just like women,
arousal in men is often involuntary meaning that no stimulus is required to acquire

arousal. In some aspects it is simply another bodily function. A lot of this male on
male rape occurs within the prison walls. Since in prison, the inmates have little to
no rights or protection from one another, rape is often never reported or talked
about. Often times in prison men build up so must testosterone and it causes to
think erratically and acts out of character. It happens and people just shove it under
a rug like it never occurred. Usually people think that it is the weaker males who
are targeted for these male on male rapes, but it is actually the ones who are usually
stronger. Since the whole purpose of rape is gaining power and control, it is more
likely for the perpetrator to want to gain or steal the power from the stronger male
in the group. In prison many times the perpetrator happens to be one of the prison
guards rather than another inmate. Though the male might be strong, since the
prison guards already hold so much power over them, they are often afraid to fight
back in fear of whatever punishment prison entails.

The notion of keeping rapes a secret needs to be changed. Often times when
women report sexual assault, they are not always believed. They usually think
women are making up lies and fabricating rape to ruin the lives of the men accused.
Doubters will often ask things like, Why did it take you so long to speak up about
the situation? or Why are you just now telling the police about this. Just because
the assault is not always immediately reported, does not mean it never occurred.
Girls are also are also afraid of being blamed for the event. Afraid of people saying
it is their fault that they were raped due to their clothing choices, past experiences,

or even levels of intoxication. Rape cases from girls/women of all ages go

unreported every day also because women are ashamed to admit that their most
sacred gift has been stolen from them. Men are afraid because essentially what
makes them a man has been used against him to make him feel less than such.

When a person survives their sexual assault, it is important to believe then

and reassure them that they are strong and they and surviving took a great deal of
strength and courage. Make sure they know it was not their fault and that no one
deserves to be assaulted. If they choose to talk about it with you, make sure you
keep it to yourself and not tell anyone else. They trusted you with this information
and telling others could be potentially harmful to them. Listen to them making sure
you stay in tuned to that person's feelings and assure them that you are glad they
opened up and told you. Never ask questions about why they did not do something
or tell them what they should have or should not have done. Give them the
information and the outlet to seek help from a trusted adult or a law enforcement
official when they think the time is right.

A womans sexual history and or clothing choices should not be seen as an

invitation to the assault. Just because we kissed that one time when we were drunk
at a party does not mean that I want it to go to another level. No means no,
regardless of sexual history, clothing choices, and levels of intoxication or usage of
other drugs, and should been taken as that.

Works Cited
"Campus Sexual Violence: Statistics | RAINN." Campus Sexual Violence: Statistics |
RAINN. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2016.
"Common Victim Behaviors of Survivors of Sexual Abuse." Common Victim Behaviors of
Survivors of Sexual Abuse | Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape (PCAR). N.p., 26
Mar. 2013. Web. 09 Dec. 2016.
"Effects of Child Sexual Abuse on Victims." Effects of CSA on the Victim. The National
Center for Victims of Crime, n.d. Web. 03 Dec. 2016.
"Effects of Sexual Assault and Rape." Joyful Heart Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Dec.
2016.
Enevoldsen, Christina. The Courage to Heal: A Guide for Women Survivors of Child Sexual
Abuse. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Overcoming Sexual Abuse. Web. 08 Dec. 2016.
"What Is Rape and Date Rape?" What Is Rape and Date Rape? National Sexual Assault
Hotline, 22 Sept. 2009. Web. 09 Dec. 2016.