Rape culture: Do not nurture

IN today’s world where chivalry is almost dead, where women’s modesty is almost gone, people tend to pay attention to the negative side to have excuses for their wrongdoings.

Rape culture describes a setting in which rape is pervasive and normalized due to societal attitudes about gender and sexuality. This is what’s happening now. In a world where the women cover only a few skin, men objectify them.

“Ayaw mabastos pero nag sho-shorts!”

“Okay lang yan, ginusto niya naman yan!”

“Nang-aakit na naman ang suot, kating-kati na ata.”

These are just a few statements that people throw to women who wear sexy outfits. If someone sexually harasses a woman wearing revealing clothes, people blame the victim and not the person harassing. A lot think that it is okay for a woman to be sexually harassed if she is showing motives. If you are not the typical “Maria Clara” that the society wants to see, you don’t deserve respect.

Judgmental eyes and mouths are everywhere in the society.

For me, victim blaming and shaming are intolerable. A woman shouldn’t be blamed for being sexually harassed or being raped. Her clothes shouldn’t be the measurement of her right. We are in a world where people are free to wear what they want, even if it is tempting, if a man knows how to control himself there is no problem.

Let’s see for example the recent gang-rape in India of an eight year old girl, AsifaBano. She had been raped and murdered by four men. Bano is a Muslim and it cannot be deny that in their culture, women are modest. The fact also that she is just a kid is enough to end rape culture. She was wearing proper Muslim attire when the incident happened, her body is covered, and she has showed no motives.

The problem is never with the victims, it is the rapists. Either you wear shorts or long pants, sleeveless or long sleeves; as long as rapists really have the motives to be indecent they will really do it. Showing a lot of skin does not mean you are giving consent for you to be feasted on. Stop rape culture. Stop victim blaming and shaming. Do not be blinded by the true accuser. Open your eyes and shut your mouths to see the real scenario.