The Women Against Violence Against Women website provides more clear insights as to how rape culture looks in the world
as we know it, and many of these examples can be seen emerging due to the
election. “Rape culture includes
jokes, TV, music, advertising, legal jargon, laws, words and imagery, that make
violence against women and sexual coercion seem so normal that people believe
that rape is inevitable. Rather than viewing the culture of rape as a problem
to change, people in a rape culture think about the persistence of rape as
“just the way things are,” (Force: Upsetting the Rape Culture). This can
be immediately connected to Trump’s “locker room talk” defense after being caught
talking in a repulsively degrading manner about women and suggesting that he
grab them and kiss them without
asking and without their consent. The transcript of this conversation is as
follows:
Trump: "Yeah, that’s her. With the
gold. I better use some TicTacs just in case I start
kissing her. You know, I’m
automatically attracted to beautiful — I just start kissing
them. It’s like a magnet. Just
kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you
do it. You can do anything." Bush: "Whatever you want." Trump: "Grab’em by the pussy.
You can do anything,” (Transcript:
Donald Trump’s Taped Comments About Women,
New York Times).
I conducted an interview
with English and Women’s Studies professor Dr. Pamela
Johnston about the connection that she has personally seen between the rhetoric
regarding rape culture and the election as a professional in the field of
Women’s Studies and as an educator. Her comments will be interspersed
throughout this section as necessary and they will begin with the comments that Trump has
said above.
“When those
audiotapes were first released, I was honestly shocked that anyone cared about
what he was saying--I've heard similar things being said about women all my
life. The election results have simply proven to me that I was right to be
shocked. When I have this discussion with people, many of them say "I
don't agree with everything he says, but . . ." Whatever follows that
"but" is really important, because it's the thing someone cares about
more than a woman's right to integrity.” (Johnston)
This
type of language happens all of the time, this has not just started with Trump,
and it represents a level of power and dominance, but I think a level of surprise
came when a potential and now future leader of the United States was seen saying things
that were so clearly sexist, misogynistic, and playing into the very real rape
culture that exists in our society. He has openly stood on a platform of speech
and actions that have supported the mistreatment and derogatory language
towards women and many have followed his example. “We need to notice this
stuff, get outraged, and share our outrage with others. Staying aware of rape
culture is painful work, but we can’t interrupt the culture of violence unless we
are willing to see what it is,” (WAVWA Staff).
In a debate following the release of this video and comments by Trump, we see Hillary Clinton speaking to the wrongness of these comments and the clear truth of character of Donald Trump because of them and his past history of consistently acting and speaking in similar ways. Her words are captured in an article by Laura Bassett for the Huffington Post, Hillary Clinton Eviscerates Donald Trump Over ‘Grab Them By The P***y Comments. “What we all saw and heard on Friday was Donald talking about women, what he thinks about women, what he does to women,” Clinton said. “And he has said that the video doesn’t represent who he is, but I think it’s clear to anyone who heard it that it represents exactly who he is, because we’ve seen this throughout the campaign.” This is a woman, Clinton, calmly sharing her outrage with the world. She is choosing to speak up on her own platform of equality, decency, and yes, even honesty, despite her flaws as a human being and as a politician, in order to work against this rhetoric that plays into rape culture and the normalization of it, especially when it is passed off as “locker room talk”.
This outrage can be seen in
tweets and Facebook posts. There is a level of betrayal that so many people
feel because the issue of rape, sexual assault, gendered violence, misogyny,
and sexism have made leaps and bounds in the normalization process. We are not
progressing, but digressing, simply on the grounds that an individual with this set of beliefs was able to make it into such an incredible position leadership and power based upon the votes of the American people. This betrayal and hurt can be seen on social media in multiple ways on social media. One of these ways can be seen in the Huffington Post article by
Alanna Vagianos, 7 Survivors On What It Means To Have An Accused Sexual Predator In The White House, in which seven survivors, Cassie, Jennifer, Risa, Jacqueline, Alexis, and Sarah, of sexual assault and rape come forth to describe how it feels that their country elected a man who stands for the normalization of rape culture, sexual assault, mistreatment of women, and the fact that he is even in accusation of being a sexual predator himself. Their testimonies and explanation via social media are included in this article.
One of the victims and those interviewed, Sarah Ortega, 20 year old Winona State University student, participated in the social media discussion regarding rape culture, sexual assault, and the rhetoric that Trump has spewed this election cycle. In the post she states "This election was eerily similar to the rhetoric that was spewed at me when I reported my assault to police and campus authority.” This post received 230 likes, 56 shares, and 18 comments that were all “thank you’s”, praises for strength and bravery, and loving support. It was surprising to see that there were no negative comments within the mix, but this could be linked to level of publicity she has as an individual and as a Facebook presence. However, the feeds in which this post arose due to the likes and shares could have very easily aroused negativity, but it is unrealistic to be able to track down and analyze each share and like for an accurate view of what negativity this attracted.
The point is that conversations about rape culture are still being had in relation to Trump and are being met with positivity and understanding, it is not all negation and resistance. Ortega took her impact even further by creating a photo campaign the featured 7 WSU students, herself included, that were survivors of sexual assault; the photos were taken by a local photographer, Cynthia Porter. She used this project for her minor at WSU, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality. “The most frustrating thing I have faced through my healing process is the silence of people close to me,” she said. “Silence NEVER favors the victim... The first step in changing rape culture on Winona State’s campus is to simply talk about it. The conversation will be uncomfortable, but it must happen,” (Ortega). I think a big common thread that can be recognized throughout this is that people are not staying silent in the wake of this hurt and pain, but are choosing to speak up in an and every form possible, including social media.
Sarah Ortega is actively moving through the levels of activism, which move from ‘slacktivism’, which can be seen in the simple action of changing a profile picture or filter to support a national or global cause or by handing out bracelets or shirts supporting your cause, which then moves to iconic or commercial versions that are created of these picture and filter changes, to financial donations by others, rallies, and potentially violence as a backlash to this activism (COMM 339 class discussion, Vrooman). She is not simply raising awareness, but is utilizing and giving voice to multiple members of the community that she is involved in and sharing the message and campaign that they created to others on a much larger scale. Trump may have inspired a lot of hate, but he is also inspiring a lot of change.
In conjunction with this, there is also a running list of women that have recently come forth in admittance saying that Donald Trump sexually assaulted them in the past. This list was created by Alanna Vagianos, Catherine Pearson, and Emma Gray, for the Huffington Post article A List Of The Women Who’ve Accused Donald Trump Of Sexual Assault, and is dedicated solely to this content and the voices of those who have come forth. Included is their stories, the time in which the assault happened, the time in which they came forth, and the response, if any, that Trump gave to their accusations; Ivana Trump, Donald’s ex-wife, is included in this list. Many of these women have accused Trump years after the actual assault taking place, often just this year in which he has run for president, and this has raised suspicion by many in regards to them potentially fabricating these accusations.
The largest gap in time that is present within this article is seen with Jill Harth, who worked with Trump in the 1990s. The assault happened in 1993 and she went through the legal process of attempting to accuse him, but it did not lead to anything to the point that she dropped it, and the public was made known of this information, this year in 2016 with the rising of his “grabbing” comments in the video footage. "In a 1997 lawsuit, Harth alleged in court documents that Trump repeatedly sexually harassed her, at one point groping her under the table. (The documents were surfaced by The Boston Globe.) Though she eventually dropped that suit, she stands by her story. “How can people not believe me now?” she asked “Inside Edition” after footage of Trump saying he grabs women by the pussy emerged,” (Huffington Post). Trump’s response to this that it was, in fact, Harth that pursued him.
Their lateness in confession plays in directly to rape culture and the fear and hesitance that women have in coming forth because they think that they will not be taken seriously or they will experience victim blaming; both are further traumatizing and defeating.
"There are plenty of reasons why sexual assault survivors may not immediately report an attack, including fear of retaliation and concern that they will not be believed. And it is one thing for an accused person to deny an allegation of assault. But to ask the American public to reflexively dismiss the women speaking out against Trump based on the disparity between when they say the assaults took place and when they decided to come forward is to perpetuate rape culture––a term coined in the 1970s to describe the way society tolerates a broad range of behaviors that create an environment where sexual offenders are not held accountable for their actions, and victims are blamed instead,” (Foran, Donald Trump’s Cynical Exploitation of Rape Culture, The Atlantic).
The argument against feminism and the need for it
in such “free” and “equal” times is becoming harder and harder to make due to
the mass amounts of evidence via social media that is present and is continuing
to roll in by the second.
There are men who are tweeting about rape culture, what it means to them, and are in conversations with others about this with others on Twitter, which, I think, shows incredible growth and positivity. In the tweet below, this individual, Paul Hosford, a news writer with The Journal.i.e. and verified Twitter user, describes in his tweets an interaction he had with a woman and his thinking process and revelations in relation to rape culture. These tweets are from about a month ago, so it clear that the rape culture conversation is still happening. It shows a huge amount of honesty and growth that I am sure not many people would be willing to admit to, for he at first reacted to this situation in an ignorant way. He openly recognizes this fault and uses this to explain the stance that men may take in regards to rape culture. Just because you as a man wouldn’t rape a woman, does not mean that women are able to trust and treat you like you will not, for social conditioning, personal experience, and media constantly tell them otherwise.
He initially gets offended that she would even think that he would assault or rape her.
But he quickly relays his realization that this situation is not really about he is feeling, it is about how that woman was feeling in that instance and how that transfer into how other women feel in similar instances, and even larger, how this contributes to the discussion of rape culture.
Hosford is openly and unapologetically calling attention to the feelings of women, the reality of rape culture, and what men should and need to think about on a daily basis to better understand it and not contribute to it in a negative or harmful way. It truly was a beautiful thing to see unfold, especially via social media when it is so often filled with hate and argument. Overall he received 606 likes, 347 retweets, and 40 or more comments to his set of tweets. All together, at least 993 people were impacted in some way from his words and who is to know how many more were impacted due to how these 993 individuals chose to share this information. This is the beauty of social media. It creates webs of conversion that can start from something so small, but can reach to so many.
In response to this series of tweets, some individuals chose to use his words to support their own advocation and awareness of rape culture, this one, from the beginning of December; the conversation keeps building and building.
Then there are others that argued the point that Hosford made in a expectedly ignorant and unresolved “agree to disagree” way by the end. This is always disappointing because it shows strong people will stand with what the were raised with and with what they have alway believed, even in the face of factual and logical evidence of truth and reality. That is rape culture.
That was a lot, but I feel that it is important to watch a conversation unfold where rape culture is so obviously being tossed back and forth and no progress is being made due to the refusal to think in a different way for even a moment. "I think most people are accustomed to patterns of thinking, and that's what they stick with. That's the easiest route to take. That's why you hear people say things like "That's just how I was raised"--they're telling you that they aren't interested in re-thinking anything. So if they've been told women make up rape allegations on a regular basis, that's what they'll believe. And if they can cite even one example that supports this idea, then they're sold on its validity,” (Johnston). Paul Gosford’s tweets received way more support, than Niall McGinley’s, obviously largely due to his followership, and he stood up for what he believed in until it truly did become a pissing match. Such maturity, such grace, such willingness to be an adult and talk it out.
These tweets thus far have been fairly tame as opposed to what is often circulating on Twitter and can be more violent and aggressive. A lot of the aggressiveness often times stems from ignorance or misdirected anger. An example of tweets like this is as follows:
Obviously DJ Chela is attempting to take a stand against rape culture and the ignorant bafoons that only encourage it due to their rhetoric and opinions. However, waiting for the ignorant to die off so the “youth” can take over is not exactly a solution either. Many of the youth are ignorant to rape culture and many of the youth actually voted for Trump. Rather than wait for the extinction of Trump-esque individuals, it would be best to focus on the education of every single individual on this planet, living and heck, why not dead, about the reality of rape culture and what can be done in order to create a social shift so large that one day rape culture will not be a topic of argument or misunderstanding. Maybe then we can begin to eradicate it completely along with sexism, misogyny, racism, classism, and all other forms of discrimination.
However, it is fair to point out the absurdity of Kellyanne Conway’s words on rape culture and who is to blame. She is contributing to rape culture in a way that pays homage to Trump himself.
“Not surprisingly, there is little
indication that the Trump campaign believes rape culture is a legitimate
phenomenon. The Republican nominee’s campaign manager, Kellyanne Conway, once said
that “rape would not exist” if women were as physically strong as men, an
argument that seems to suggest rape is the product of an innate impulse in all
men and women’s inherent weakness,” (Foran, DonaldTrump’s Cynical Exploitation of Rape Culture, The Atlantic).
— Dowhatisright (@stand4all)
December 1, 2016
This individual’s tweet points out another obvious fault in Conway’s way of thinking and the evidence that she has to support it.
There is an entire page by The Telegraph dedicated solely to the
sexists tweets, remarks, and
comments of Donald Trump, some dating back to the
1980s; some track record eh? In the tweet
below that was also listed on this
page none other is directly speaking to rape culture and its reality
than Trump
himself.
Some of the comments and interactions to
this tweet were as follows below. Some of these comments are actually quite
gloriously witty and charming in the dealings with the sheer stupidity of
Trump’s tweet and these are just a few of the responses; most of them are
absolute gold. Some of them are highly inappropriate, yes, but it kind of helps you fight through the abrupt acidity of his ignorance. This communication in this instance is more in defense of the
misinformed ignorance of Trump in regards to this topic of sexual assault and
rape culture that makes the appearance via Twitter vomiting.
Looking to my own experience with social media ranting, flying spittle included, we take a detour to Facebook. A personal Facebook friend of mine made a post in regards to this video of 14 year old Kayley Dixon and the poetry she wrote in regards to sexual assault. I will keep names anonymous for their sake and for mine. These interaction happened in September and was indefinitely influenced by the election rhetoric. This individual is a wholehearted Trump supporter and conservative in every way. ‘Merica.
His comment to the video was as follows:
"Rape is something no one should ever have to go through. I have a younger sister and I can't imagine that happening to her. But to classify all men as potential rapist is no different than calling all white men racist, or all black men thugs. And just because a man says a woman is fine or hot doesn't mean he's going to rape her. And every time a man admires how beautiful a woman is doesn't mean he's mentally undressing her. The problem with this entire world is we judge an entire race/gender by the actions of a few. No one will ever get rid of rapist. Learn how to defend yourself. Carry pepper spray or a taser. And if you're 21 or older get your concealed carry permit and carry a gun,” (Anonymous).
He is completely playing into rape culture by suggesting that just because he does not intend to rape a woman when giving her a compliment, that women should not think this is ever a possibility when receiving one or being approached by a man. We saw the clarification of this falsity earlier from a male’s perspective with the tweets by Paul Hosford. As if this was not enough for me, I went and read the comments beneath his post. He received praise for his honesty and “respect" towards women, even from his own mother. But this is where I was officially hooked and knew that I could not longer stay silent. He responded to a previous comment on his post by saying "I'm actually lucky enough to have a woman that agrees with me on all this feminism and rape culture bullcrap. I honestly don't even know how these feminist have boyfriends or husbands.”
Take notice of the “feminism and rape culture bullcrap” excerpt from the quote above. That is rape culture. And I experienced it firsthand. I acknowledge that my argument was not as sound as it could have been, but this is how I proceeded to step in, in the most calm and educated way that I possibly could with the amount of anger and grief that I was feeling in that moment:
"I identify as a feminist and don't see why that should automatically make me unable to have a relationship with a man. For what reason? Because I want equal chances and rights as a man? I don't see why that is a negative thing. The definition of feminism regards the desire for equality, I sincerely encourage you to research it. The question you should be asking is why do women have to be prepared to defend themselves. Teach men not to rape, not women to fear this potential violence. The actions of a few ruin the lives of many, yes, but not in the way you describe. Just because you see certain things as a man does not mean women see things the same way. Calling a woman "fine" or "hot" can easily be harassment if it is not wanted by the woman. You are not allowed to say what women do or do not want just because you think that doesn't make you a rapist. We shouldn't need guns, pepper spray, and self defense to walk confidently through this life. If that is what you are saying you are only encouraging the rape culture to continue. You have no idea how many women you may be hurting by just passing off rape culture as crap. Being a feminist means being an advocate for myself as a woman and for men so we can live in equality. You should want any woman to want to be equal to you as a man. No one is less than in any way, “ (Nance).
I went on to be explained to by multiple people of how I was wrong and ignorant of reality, and needed to “look at the statistics!” to better understand how it isn’t all strangers in the bushes that rape women (as if I didn’t already know that). I was questioned why I wanted to be treated like a man because I was a feminist, the influence of my own father was brought into the argument with "And I know for a fact that your father wouldn't want you treated like men are”, would I want to be drafted alongside the men if the time came, that I needed to accept the way things were due to biological differences and strengths, that I needed to not expect privilege because I was female and a feminist, i.e. getting custody of children in divorce, and that the reason that my male opposer was “blessed with such a great” woman as his own girlfriend because he was raised so well to believe all of these things, hence the reason why I do not have a relationship of my own. That is the shortened version. Still exhausting, right?
My response:
"I am not saying not to prepare. I believe you missed my point on that one.
Feminism doesn't mean being treated like a man, it means equality. Again I encourage you to research. There is a difference. I am not afraid to fight for my country as well as for myself, if that is what you are asking, regardless of my gender.
No we do not have all rights men do. An easy one is difference in pay. Constitutional rights don't reflect the prevalent sexism and misogyny that negatively impact the lives of women, regardless of the law.
You shouldn't have to beat anyone senseless, use your words eloquently and your mind in a calculated way. Much more powerful.
Men shouldn't be held at a different standard. Feminism helps that.
Feminism will equal out the going to prison for your hypothetical beating of fellow humans.
I don't care if men are "bigger and stronger". That doesn't give you entitlement and it shouldn't affect you in a negative way either. Feminism would help once again.
Feminism would help with divorce and men gaining custody of their own children too. Equality.
Yes, let's look to the Bible. I believe my God wouldn't want me to bow to any earthly man, or be treated as a man as you seem to think I'm trying to say, and that I should receive the same opportunities as any other brother or sister in Christ. We are all equal, no matter who is weak or "strong" or what gender we are.
I'm not passing any assumptions, but rather making a point. But I daresay you have made them all for me as listed above.
Your perception of what feminism actually is is unfortunately skewed and is therefore affecting your argument.
No, my father doesn't want me treated like men are, because that is not what feminism is. I like how you make reference to a man in my life, as if that is supposed to influence me in some way. Put me in my place perhaps? And at the end of the day, my life is to be governed by me, not my father or any other man. We should all be respected, not one more than another, even if it is in the woman's favor,” (Nance).
This was my attempt to oppose each opposition that I was dealt with reasons as to why feminism would actually help their confusion as to why we are not equal and how equality would indeed benefit them. Biological differences were brought back up again, that I wanted to be treated like a man because I wanted equality, with a side of thwarted religious support, and a final dash of “Hilary supporter” and that I was “closed minded” (check the misspelling of her name). It truly is saddening that the want of equality is viewed as closed minded, but of course, it is not in that blatancy that they viewed it. There are so many arguable points within this Facebook post that it would take me days to work through them all individually to the extent in which they deserve. I recognized the lost cause of the situation and proceeded to remove myself from the conversation. This is rape culture. The denial that there is a problem. The viewing of rape culture as “bullcrap” and the uneducated understanding of what it is and of how you may be contributing to it. My heart and spirit was utterly broken. I personally took a stand on social media, like so many others that I have analyzed within this set of data, in hopes of changing a perception for the better.
The next and last personal experience I have with rape culture hits even closer to home, and I will also be keeping identities anonymous here as well. Victim-blaming followed a particular confession on the grounds that the victim was not tied down or physically held down by their assaulter, who was also their boyfriend at the time of almost three years, that the victim still could have said no because of this lack of physical force; a lack of understanding on what rape and rape culture truly is. This individual was aware that the victim had been in this manipulative and borderline emotionally and mentally abusive relationship, but this was not enough to take away the victim’s ability to say no to something of this nature. The victim was at fault, but would be forgiven by God. The victim sat dumbfounded and immediately regretted every word they had uttered. They hated themselves for speaking up, for telling their story that they had suppressed for years, in fear of being judged and due to self-blame. They shared their story and in turn became a part of rape culture instantaneously due to victim blaming. This is why women do not speak up. If this victim could do it all over again, they wouldn’t speak up. They would much rather carry it with them, silently, for the rest of their life, than have to feel that level betrayal and blame from someone that they thought they could be honest with. For them, speaking up was not worth it, it was only used against them, and this is the reality of rape culture.
When personally speaking towards these issues, misconceptions, and realities, now more than ever due to the influence that Trump has brought to our society, unless I am with likeminded people, I am told that I am angry, my evidence is wrong, I am too sensitive, and I need to refocus my priorities. I think many individuals are feeling the same way because of the election, but they are choosing to power through this resistance and make their voices heard. I think that this may be a huge reason why people turn to social media to get their feelings, opinions, fears, hopes, and concerns out in the open; they have a bigger chance of being heard. No one will cut them off mid sentence or tell them they are wrong in a hurtful tone, you can’t read that as well in a tweet. You could tweet forever and never stop until your venting was over and at least one person would hear you and probably support you; that doesn’t always happen in physical, verbal communication. Even the most absurd tweets presented in this analysis had at least one like, and sometimes that is all someone needs. Trump has been such an inspiration for people to stand up and voice what they think on public platforms about tough topics like rape culture, and these voices are appearing all over various social media platforms.
I believe that I have come to a very different concluding point than I originally thought I would; positivity. I did not start out this analysis with strong thoughts of finding people advocating for what is right and for what is true, but I am so happy that I did. This level of positivity has a lot to do with when, how, and what I searched, but I would be lying if I said it did not minutely reinforce my faith in humanity, if even for a moment.
