Stop Telling Women How to Not Get Raped

[Tansy_Gold]

110. I guess what I dislike is this attitude

on the part of some guys (and women, too) that they're not part of the "potential" crowd. All men, all women, are potential murders. All men, all women, all GLBTIQ people are potential thieves. Everyone is a potential arsonist. Why is it then that the label "potential rapist" is an insult? No, it's a statement of fact.

Most of us are never going to be murderers. The circumstances that would force us to kill are too extreme and too rare for most of us to be pushed to that point. But the circumstances under which a man would carry through sexual activity with a woman who was not consenting or was not able to consent are far more common. And the crime is far more difficult to prosecute, for all the reasons mentioned in this thread and more.

But in all my years on DU, one thing I've always tried to keep in mind is that what I write is seen by people other than those who post in the thread. I always try to write with the lurkers in mind. So if I reach one guy who finally gets it that no means no FOR HIM TOO, or if I reach one woman who finally understands that she has a right to say no WHENEVER SHE FEELS LIKE IT, then I've accomplished what I set out to do.



TG