Rape Part 2

When the word rape is used, most women think of a stranger jumping out from behind some bushes, maybe the back seat of their car, or climbing through a bedroom window and violently attacking their victim. Well ladies, you are partially correct. But in reality, most rapes are committed by men who know their victims. They may have gone out with them or may even be considered a friend. I call this date or acquaintance rape.

Date or acquaintance rape is very common in our society. Experts estimate that as many as 90 percent of all rapes are never reported and of those reported, approximately 60 percent of the victims knew their attacker. Their ages were from 15-25 years old. (The National Center for the Prevention and Control of Rape quotes 90 percent of adolescent rape victims said they were acquainted with their attackers. Reported in Newsweek, April 9, 1984.) Remember non-consensual sex of any kind is a violation of your body and is considered by law as an act of violence. It does NOT matter if it's someone you have dated a few time or are even engaged to. NO is NO!

Approximately 7000 students on thirty-two college campuses as surveyed by Mary Koss, a professor at Kent University, in 1985 revealed that one in eight women were victims of rape. One in every twelve men admitted to having either forced a woman to have intercourse through physical force or coercion and admitted to raping or attempting to rape a woman. However none of these men identified themselves as rapist, yet only 57 percent of the women who have been raped labeled their experience as rape. The remaining 43 percent did not even acknowledge to themselves that they were raped. (As reported by Ellen Sweet, "Date rape-The story of an epidemic and those who deny it", MS magazine dated October 1985, pg. 56) Date rape occurs on college campuses large and small, public or private, big city or rural. It makes no exception.

Fortunately, the majority of the male population are not rapist, but there are some that are. Unfortunately, it will not go away. Hopefully, forthcoming articles will attempt to convey to you what to watch for, why and how it could happen, and various measure of avoidance and/or defense.

Written by: Frank Shilosky