Image from CNN article
Q: You may have already seen this, but I thought you might be interested in this article on a female condom that is meant to fight rape. I wondered what your opinion on it was (would it actually help stop/prevent rape?, etc), or thought that maybe you would like to blog about it (or at least pass the link around).
I have heard of the anti-rape condom before. It actually first surfaced under a slightly different name a few years ago. Then it was called Rapex and now it’s Rape-aXe. And believe me I have a lot of feelings about it. I want to preface this though with the fact that I know nothing about South African culture or any other cultures in Africa. I cannot even pretend to begin to know what is going on over there.
That being said, I have to say that this is not treating the problem at all. It’s another case of the victims having to protect themselves by changing their behaviors instead of getting to the root of the problem. The people who need to change their behaviors are the rapists. They need to stop raping and not because they’re afraid that there might be teeth in a woman’s vagina. Instead, we need wide spread social change that creates an environment of respect for women and autonomy over their own sexuality and bodies. Rape-aXe is something that may or may not help in the short term, but it does nothing to effect the long term issues surrounding rape. I found it interesting that the creator said “Yes, my device may be a medieval, but it’s for a medieval deed that has been around for decades.” This evil deed has been around since before medieval times. In fact, it’s pretty much been around since the beginning of time, not decades but millennia. That is seriously long term and we need to think in those terms.
Let us address the short term though. One side effect I see of this toothy condom is more violence. A man who has just raped a woman and had a sharp object embedded into his penis is probably extremely likely to lash out at the woman who was wearing it. And what about a woman who is gang raped? That is going to spell out even more violence for her. The rapists will probably beat her more severely than they would have.
Also, there is more than one way to rape a person. It does not always involve penis in vagina. It could involve an ass, a mouth, and/or other insertable objects besides a penis. In fact, why not just shove a broom handle or something up there first to make sure she’s not packing a Rape-aXe?
They say that this would help with rape convictions because a medical doctor has to remove the condom. How long until there is an underground removal service? Just because only doctors can remove them now doesn’t mean that they will always be the only ones to be able to do it.
I also worry that it will hinder rape convictions if a woman isn’t wearing it. I can imagine it now. They accuse her of wanting it because she wasn’t wearing a Rape-aXe.
Also, this condom doesn’t actually prevent sexual assault. It just latches on to a rapist’s penis after the sexual assault has already begun. Will it prevent rape if rapists think that women are wearing them? Well, do the sponges with razorblades prevent anything?
However, I do not fault women for wanting to wear this to help protect themselves. It has to be better than shoving a sponge filled with razorblades into your vagina. That just sounds like a horrible idea. Although, at $2 a pop this may not be within most poor women’s means. And lets face it, the poorer you are the more likely you are to get raped and the less likely your rapist will be convicted. But there’s a desperation there obviously because the rape rates are so extremely high in South Africa.
There just has to be a better way. We need to treat the disease, not the symptom. Women’s rights are human rights.
I personally think packing a pistol, mace, a ninja sword, or something else to defend yourself with is more rational and effective than an anti-rape condom. Again, this falls under the category of changing the victim’s behavior rather than the rapist’s, but alas we do not live in a perfect world.
I have very, very strong feelings against violence and rape. I, like you, have little to no knowledge of what’s going on in that country. I am sure the government there has other concerns besides re-educating their rapists. I think there is some flaw, however, in the argument of “we need to change the rapists”. I’m not a psychologist, but men like that shouldn’t get the opportunity for change.
Punishment. Severe and strict punishment for rape and sexual assault. Our own society has become to PC and humanitarian for this kind of behavior, but it is what should happen. In our society, if you show you are incapable of driving a car safely without endangering yourself or others, you lose that right. If you are incapable of controlling your urges and using your penis in a safe consensual manner? You should lose that right as well.
There is only so much you can do to influence an adult’s decision. As a child, parents and teachers try to instill a sense of right and wrong, a moral code of conduct. As an adult, governments make laws to help keep order and maintain peace. These are the aspects of life that we, as a community can influence. However, all the best laid plans in the world can end in ruin. Two children raised by the same parents with the same morals can turn out completely different because every person is different.
It is not a woman’s fault for being raped, no matter how she was dressed, where she was at or what she was doing. It is a tragedy that women should be asked to prepare to defend themselves from their mail carrier, the guy riding next to them on the bus or their professor in college. However, in the world we live in, I hope you don’t think less of someone like me for educating his daughter on how to defend herself.
It’s not a case of victim blaming. It’s a case of not wanting her to become a victim.
I am sure the government there has other concerns besides re-educating their rapists. I think there is some flaw, however, in the argument of “we need to change the rapists”. I’m not a psychologist, but men like that shouldn’t get the opportunity for change.
I think we’re operating under separate assumptions here. I’m actually referring to a society that grows and fosters rapists. If 28% of men are raping women (going off the article, although I assume not all rapists admit to raping women or even think that they’ve raped when they have so it’s quite possible that the percentage is actually much higher) then we have to assume that there is something seriously wrong with that society where this is so prevalent. I’m talking about changing the culture before rapists ever do rape, not necessarily reforming those who have already raped. Although that needs to happen too. And I don’t think it’s just in the hands of government that this needs to happen. We need seriously widespread change and not just in South Africa. We need change in all countries. The kind of change I’m calling for is the actual respect for women’s bodies, sexuality, and autonomy. No amount of taking away a rapist’s ability to rape is going to change whether or not rape happens. Instead, we need to focus on achieving real equality.
It is not a woman’s fault for being raped, no matter how she was dressed, where she was at or what she was doing.
It never really matters what a woman is wearing or where she is because it can happen to anyone at anytime. All that matters is that she is in the presence of a rapist. She is not at fault, the rapist is.
However, in the world we live in, I hope you don’t think less of someone like me for educating his daughter on how to defend herself.
Of course I think no less than you. There needs to be wide systemic change, but until that happens women still need to learn how to defend themselves and protect themselves when they can. It’s unfortunately not always possible though. I mean I think it’s totally fucked up that I can’t walk alone at night, but I still try to avoid doing it. Taking precautions is just common sense. But it’s also not my fault if I get raped or mugged or murdered if I do end up having to walk home one night by myself. If I was blamed for it then that would be victim blaming.
I had my concerns when I saw this as well. My hope for right now is that it will serve as a deterrent, but considering the prevalence of rape, I don’t think it will be long before somebody figures out how to remove one of these. I also agree that rapists are just going to use other orifices to get what they want.
From what I understand, a high number of rapes occur in girls/women who are thought to be virgins (something to do with the healing power of virginity). These are the girls that probably wouldn’t wear this condom to begin with.
I completely agree that education needs to be a foremost priority, for both men and women.