Girls who have uncontrollable lust1/23/2024 Sadly many children don’t feel able to disclose what has happened to them at the time. Research suggests that only about 11% of rape victims report it to the police. Some people will tell someone right away but others may take hours, days, weeks, months or even years before they feel that they can do so. All sorts of concerns may rush through their heads. Being raped leaves victims feeling very confused and upset, particularly if their trust has been broken by someone they know. There are a whole host of factors in this. Myth – Victims of rape will report it straight away.įact – Sometimes they will and sometimes they won’t. As a result, there is often no sign of violence, torn clothing or witnesses who heard screaming. Victims often ‘freeze’ or ‘flop’, a decision made by their sub-conscious brain in order that they will survive the threat. Male victims often feel particularly guilty about this but they shouldn’t. This is part of our natural psychological make-up. People like to think that they would try and fight off an attacker but the reality is that In traumatic situations we often freeze rather than fight, scream or run away, without generally realising what we are doing or making any conscious decisions about how to react. Myth – A victim of rape will scratch, fight and scream.įact – It is relatively rare for victims to react in this way. There is no shame involved in being the victim of rape. It is often not so much about sexual desire as power and control and is often linked to abusive relationships. Rape affects all ages and all social classes. Men can be raped as the offence includes the penetration of the mouth or anus as well as the vagina. Young children, men, pregnant mothers and elderly women can be raped. There is no such thing as a ‘typical’ rape victim and it is certainly not only young women. Myth – Only women get raped and then only certain types of women.įact – Anyone can be raped. As with women, the perpetrator of sexual violence against men is more likely to be a family member or someone they know. Rape is not a ‘gay crime’ and does not discriminate. Myth – No heterosexual men rape other men.įact – There is a myth that only gay males are victims of rape or serious sexual assault or that only gay men rape other men. This probably contributes to the widely held but mistaken myth that rape is, in most cases, committed by strangers. These rapes are less likely to be reported to the police given the greater impact that reporting the rape will have on the victims’ personal life. he may be a friend, a workmate, relative or partner. Research shows that over 80% of rapists are known to the victim. It is likely that an even greater proportion of the unreported rapes involve people who are known to each other. Very often the relationship is a close one such as marriage or family. So-called stranger attacks do happen but the vast majority of reported rapes involve a victim and offender who are known to each other in some way. Rape involves someone having sex with you without your consent and contrary to popular belief most victims are overcome by the fear of violence rather than its actual use. Myth – ‘Classic’ rape is committed by a stranger lurking in an alleyway with a knife.įact – All rape is serious and there is no such thing as ‘real rape’ or ‘classic rape’. The vast majority of rapes are carefully planned. Rape is a crime of violence, control, degradation and intimidation. Myth – Rape is a crime of sexual needs or uncontrollable urges.įact – People can, and do, control their sexual urges. Rapists are ordinary people, many are highly respected members of the community and in 1980 in England and Wales, only 2% of convicted rapists were considered to be in need of psychiatric treatment. It is difficult for someone to call this person a rapist because they will feel disbelief about what happened and also feel that they won’t be believed by others. The reality is that rapists are ‘normal’ men: husbands, partners, neighbours, work colleagues etc. There are stereotypes of rapists as people who are unable to lead normal lives. Myth – Those who rape are sick or not normal.įact – It is rare for rapists to be diagnosed with a mental illness.
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