Victim Blaming, Beyond Rape
Entire campaigns and movements are spurred into action when somebody tells a woman, not to mention women in general, not to dress in a certain way in order to avoid rape. And that’s certainly a good thing, because it’s the criminals who are to blame, not the victims. But then why is it all right to turn around and blame the victims, or at least strongly and publicly “advise” them to change their behavior, in other situations? Why is it all right and even a good thing to tell people not to leave belongings in visible places inside their parked cars or post on social networking sites when they’ll be away from home if they don’t want to be robbed? Why should people be advised not to go for a walk at night or pass through certain areas if they don’t want to be mugged? Isn’t it the same thing?
I would think that we fund law enforcement in order to feel safe and be able to do things that might theoretically attract criminals without fear, right? So being told to avoid such actions basically means that those who are supposed to keep us safe can’t do their jobs, but want to blame us for their failures. Which is the exact same thing that happens in the clothing and rape scenario, but I don’t really see people picking up on it, which just goes to show once again how our society separates anything having to do with sex from anything else.
How much you heard any of these things largely depends on the level of criminality in your country or region, so you should consider yourself lucky if you haven’t. But what I want to ask is why do those who do hear these things keep putting up with it, especially if it happens frequently? Where are the petitions, the protests and the movements that fight against this mentality and these practices in general, not only in one specific scenario? Am I just missing all of them or they really don’t exist, or at least not on a large enough scale to get any attention from the media or authorities?
I think we should react to any such “advice” very firmly and clearly. I think we should make it very clear that it’s the criminals who are to blame and they must be caught and punished in an exemplary fashion, so perhaps someday there will no longer be any need to guard ourselves against their behavior. I think we should no longer separate victims into categories according to vague social perceptions and instead state firmly that no victim’s passive behavior may be blamed for the criminal’s crime or used by law enforcement authorities as an excuse for their failures.
Actually, that’s even more valid when those same law enforcement authorities restrict our rights and abilities to defend ourselves, with lethal force if we deem it necessary, against these wrongdoers, forcing us to only rely on their services even when they keep proving to be inadequate. But that’s a story for another time…
