At the beginning of October of this year, the social chair of a fraternity at Georgia Tech, Matthew Peterson, sent out an email to his “bros” about “how to lure rape-bait.” If you find this funny, you are a part of what is called rape culture. Rape culture is where sexual violence is taken lightly and where jokes about rape are supposedly “funny.” Let’s stop laughing at these “blurred lines” of consent and stop the idea that rape is something to laugh about.
Shortly after this email became public, Peterson wrote an apology letter to his school’s newspaper, Technique. In the apology, he says, “It was written as a joke for a small audience. I have now come to realize this is a very serious topic that should not be taken lightly.” It’s comforting that he eventually understood how insensitive what he said was. Today we seem to be experiencing an epidemic of sexual violence throughout different cultures, and it should be taken seriously but often isn’t. To be aware of the extent of the matter and to stop being the person who says something insensitive like, “That test just raped me,” there are a few steps to take.
The first step is realizing what rape is. It is easy to lose track of the real definition of “rape” in this society. “Rape” has become a term thrown around in casual conversation and, because of this, we face a cultural blind spot. Rape is any act of sexual intercourse that is forced upon a person. The second step is asking the question, “how is nonconsensual sex funny?” When you realize the answer is obviously “no,” make sure you make it known to your peers that jokes about sexual violence isn’t funny. And even singing songs that promote non-consent aren’t funny either. And yes, that includes that dumb top song of the summer “Blurred Lines” by Robin Thicke. So, let’s stop promoting rape culture.