So without giving too much information about my location in the world, just know that recently a terrible crime was committed in my city (which is unusual because where I live is like the most dull place ever). I don't know the particulars of the crime because they haven't been released to the public (understandably) but a fourteen year old girl, I think she was fourteen, was abducted and raped on her way to school and was then left one mile away from where she was taken.
Of course, I was shaken by the news and my heart and prayers go out to this girl whose life will probably change forever because of this horrible event. The first thing the police did was tell all teenagers and people in general to walk in groups which was understandable.
I go to school on the day that the news breaks and everyone is talking about it, some people are scared and others are consolidating their friends. The girl who was abducted apparently went to a school very close to mine and she was only in the year below.
But as the day goes on, I'm told that one teacher said something to her year 7 class (a group of eleven year olds) that really annoyed me. Apparently this teacher told the girls in her class to 'lengthen their skirts to avoid danger'.
This annoyed me in a number of ways but the main reason it really pissed me off was the fact that it only reinforced the idea of 'asking for it'. If you are unfamiliar with that grotesque phrase, 'asking for it' implies that the clothes you wear determine whether you will be raped or sexually assaulted.
The fact that a grown woman was telling a bunch of impressionable children that if they have a short skirt men won't be able to resist raping them sickened me. What's going on with our society? Instead of teaching girls to cover up to stop potential rape, maybe just tell boys that girls aren't sexual objects. And tell them not to rape people.
And while we're on this subject of rape, can we also acknowledge male rape which is never talked about? Ladies and men, if a man tells you he doesn't want sex- he doesn't want it. If you force them to have sex with you, that is rape.
Can people just stop raping other people? It's just common sense to me really that when someone tells me they don't want to do something, they don't want to do it.
Rant over... For now.
