Disclaimer: this article refers to the rape of women by men. I acknowledge that men can be raped and that people can be raped by members of the same sex, but choose to deal with this kind of rape for a variety of reasons, including its recent prevalence in the media.

Content warning: references to rape, rape apologism/denial, victim blaming, and objectification.

Myth 1: A woman who is raped asked for it if she dressed “provocatively”.

In other words, if a woman gave the impression that she might be interested in sex at all*, she forfeited the right to choose with whom, when, where, what kind of sex, or to change her mind; if a woman is interested in sex at all, she is no longer a discerning human being, but a sex object for the indiscriminate use of any man.

Myth 2: A woman who is raped asked for it if she was “flirtatious”.

In other words, if a woman gave the impression that she might be interested in sex at all, she forfeited the right to choose with whom, when, where, what kind of sex, or to change her mind; if a woman is interested in sex at all, she is no longer a discerning human being, but a sex object for the indiscriminate use of any man. Continue reading