Chapter 6 Flashcards
Rape is more than an act of violence- what type of crime is it?
> it is also a violation of the most intimate sort and strikes at our identities as women and men. In many ways, it is the ultimate assaultive crime
Rape is also a crime that is subject to more what?
> misunderstanding than most.
What are some misunderstandings about rape?
> we tend to perceive it solely as having female victims, but the reality is that although females represent the majority of rape victims and males represent the majority of rape offenders, both males and females are capable of being both victims and offenders.
> In addition, despite the myth that the majority of rapes are perpetrated by strangers, rape in the United States is most likely to be perpetrated by people the victim knows.
Because of the misunderstandings around rape, what do the state statues now consider about them?
> now considered gender and relationship neutral.
What is the definition of rape as proposed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)?
> Rape is defined as any completed or attempted unwanted vaginal (for women), oral, or anal penetration through the use of physical force (such as being pinned or held down, or by the use of violence) or threats to physically harm
> includes times when the victim was drunk, high, drugged, or passed out and unable to consent.
What are the three categories of rape as per the CDC?
1) completed forced penetration,
2) attempted forced penetration
3) and completed alcohol or drug facilitated penetration.
What is rape among women as per the CDC?
> Among women, rape includes vaginal, oral, or anal penetration by a male using his penis.
> It also includes vaginal or anal penetration by a male or female using their fingers or an object.
What is rape among men as per the CDC?
> Among men, rape includes oral or anal penetration by a male using his penis.
> It also includes anal penetration by a male or female using their fingers or an object.
What type of violence is the least reported?
> rape and sexual assault remains the least likely form of violence to be reported to police
Similar to information on forms of violence perpetrated in the home, the most reliable information on rape victimization—imperfect and incomplete as it is, is collected from where?
> comprises the data obtained from social scientific surveys.
The only survey that monitors rape and sexual assault on an annual basis is what survey?
> is the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS).
What is a downfall of the NCVS?
> the questions used to uncover rape are probably the least behaviorally specific.
What are the issues with surveys about rape? How could this problem be avoided?
> The word rape itself has a variety of meanings that are used differently, depending upon the situation and the individuals involved.
> these types of questions about rape are prone to a great deal of underreporting.
> In order to avoid this problem behaviorally specific questions need to be asked
Which study began to use behaviourally specific questions?
> a study by Mary Koss
> examined the rape victimization experiences of college women (how they used specific questions)
Are estimates of rape higher in the NISVS than those of the NCVS? If so why might they be higher?
> Yes- they are higher because they use behaviourally specific questions - not vague questions
> the NISVS is introduced to respondents as a survey about issues of health and relationships, unlike the NCVS, which is introduced to respondents as a survey about crime.
According to the NCVS, how have the rates of rape changed? Approximately how many people aged 12+ were rape/SA victims in 2018?
> has not changed much over time
> approximately 734,630 people aged 12 and older were victims of rape and sexual assault in 2018.
Have the majority of victimizations reported to NCVS interviewers been reported to the police? How many in 10 are?
> The majority of victimizations reported to NCVS interviewers were never reported to police.
> In fact, fewer than 3 in 10 victimizations, according to the NCVS, are ever reported to police.
What are the NISVS estimates of rape? (What age group do they survey?) is this higher than the estimate provided by the NCVS?
> interviews men and women aged 18 and older only,
> estimates that approximately 1,270,000 people are raped annually.
> much higher than the NCVS
Unfortunately, the only estimates of rape and sexual assault available at most local levels, including state and city levels, are from what kind of reports?
> are from the less-reliable police reports.
Why do victims fear reporting? (Provide 5 reasons)
> the personal nature of the victimization,
> fear of retaliation from the offender,
> and the treatment they expect to receive from the media and the criminal justice system
> fear they won’t be believed by police
> fear a sense of shame.
As we noted in the beginning of the chapter, females experience much higher rates of rape compared with males. According to the NISVS, what are the annual and lifetime rates? Compare the lifetime rates for men and women.
> 1% of adult women in the United States are raped every year = more than 1.2 million women annually.
> Over 18% of women have been raped in their lifetimes compared to just over 1% of men.
Are the risks for rape distributed equally across ethnicities? Which race experiences the highest risk and what does this risk translate to when measured in 1 in 4 and when did these rapes happen?
INCLUDE THE OTHER RATES FOR THE OTHER RACES (PLEASE EDIT)
> are not distributed equally.
> American Indians and Alaskan Natives (AIAN) are much more likely to be raped in their lifetimes
> In fact, over one in four AIAN women have been raped in their lives *The majority of rapes occurred when the victims were under 25 years of age, and nearly half occurred before age 18.
Do most countires have national surveys for rape? If not- what data is used? Should there be national comparisons for rape (what do scholars think?)
> No most countries do not have a national survey that measures rape victimizations
> because of this, only police data can be relied upon.
> many scholars warn against making comparisons of rape rates across countries because police procedures and legal definitions of rape vary so widely
Relying on police reports for rape data is even more problematic in certain cultures, including predominately what two cultures? Why is it problematic for these two?
> Islamic or Hindu cultures
> problematic = victims are often publicly shamed and are therefore unlikely to report their victimizations to police.
What two countries had a rape rate of 0 in 2010?
> In Hong Kong and Mongolia, no cases of rape were reported to police in 2010.
In two countries that are somewhat comparable- surveys reveal patterns similar to those found in the United States- what is that pattern of victimization for rape and what are the countries similar to the US?
> Females are more likely to be rape victims than males and their attackers are much more likely to be known rather than to be strangers.
> Great Britain and Canada,
What is the movie spotlight about? How much abuse was reported in this movie?
> The movie Spotlight, a drama that tells the story of the Boston Globe’s investigation of the Roman Catholic Church’s cover-up of child sexual abuse by clergymen
> 2200 pages of files of abuse
One of the most recent cases to be uncovered concerned what Diocese? What happened in this Diocese?
HINT- AJD
> the Altoona-Johnstown Diocese in Pennsylvania in 2016.
> In this case, a grand jury concluded that two Catholic bishops in this diocese hid the sexual abuse of hundreds of children by more than 50 priests and other religious leaders over a 40-year period.
> As was the case in Boston, evidence indicates that the police, district attorneys, and judges in the area also participated in this cover-up.
Although the Catholic Church has received the most attention, they are not the only religion that is dealing with allegations of abuse and with improperly handling victimizations that do get reported. What other church has had issues?
> the Houston Chronicle investigated sexual abuse in the Southern Baptist church and discovered over 700 victims in a 20-year time period
Churches are not the only institutions to have concealed allegations of child sexual abuse- what other institutions did?
Hint - all three involved coaches.
> Pennsylvania State University = Jerry Sandusky, an assistant football coach at Penn State, was convicted in June of 2012 of sexually assaulting 10 boys, all of whom were part of Sandusky’s local charity dedicated to mentoring young boys from disadvantaged homes.
> This coach, J. Dennis Hastert, eventually became the Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, coached the sport of wrestling = was federally charged for paying for his victims’ silence of sexual abuse
> Larry Nassar, the U.S.A. Gymnastics national team doctor = targeting young women in their care for victimization. (olympic committe and Michigan State University partaked in coverups)
In the general community, when the victims of rape or sexual abuse are children, which divisions become involved? Why do they become involved?
> the Child Protective Services divisions of states usually become involved
> because they are mandated to protect and remove potential victims from abusive situations.
Are the mandatory reporting offences for child sexual abuse? If so, who is required to report?
> all states have mandatory reporting laws for these offenses
> requires designated professionals, such as school and health officials, to report cases of sexual abuse of children in addition to acts of physical abuse or neglect.
The federal definition of sexual abuse and exploitation included in the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974 is illustrative of most state statutes and includes what two components in their definition?
A. The employment, use, persuasion, inducement, enticement, or coercion of any child to engage in, or assist any other person to engage in, any sexually explicit conduct or simulation of such conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct; or
B. The rape, molestation, prostitution, or other form of sexual exploitation of children, or incest with children
Are rates of child sexual abuse harder to estimate compared to adult rates?What do some estimates range at?
> incident rates of child sexual abuse are even more difficult to estimate than those of adults = because children are even more reluctant to tell anyone about these victimizations.
> This is largely because the perpetrators are usually trusted friends, family members, or neighbors who gain their victims’ trust and then typically intimidate them with threats of harm
> some estimates of child sexual abuse range from 114,000 to 300,000 cases per year
For what precise reason is it that the sexual abuse of children is often considered one of the most heinous of forms of crime? As a result, what kind of crime is it labelled as?
> it is a betrayal of the innocence and dependence of the children in their care.
> Child sex abuse is often referred to as the “silent crime” because victims are very reluctant to tell anyone.
How many boys and girls have been sexually abused and what are the offenders like?
Numbers are out of /x, offenders are the same:
> Studies indicate that about 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 20 boys has been a victim of child sexual abuse.
> Offenders are overwhelmingly male, and although over one-third of offenders are likely to be juveniles, they range in age from adolescents to the elderly.
Similar to adult rape victims, only what percentage of child rapes are committed by strangers?
> about 14% of child sexual abuse victims are victimized by strangers
Are colleges and universities safe? If not, for what population is the risk of rape increased?
> college campuses are as dangerous and crime prone as the larger communities within which they exist.
> In fact, research suggests that women attending college are at greater risk of rape and sexual assault compared with other women of the same age in the general population.
When the U.S. Department of Justice realized the problems inherent to official reports of rape and sexual assault victimization on campuses, what survey did they fund/introduce?
> called the National College Women Sexual Assault Victimization Study (NCWSV) that was carried out by Bonnie Fisher and her colleagues
What questions on the NCWSV differed to those of the NCVS? What do those types of questions illuminate?
> it was found that the more behaviorally specific questions yielded significantly more reports of victimization compared with the NCVS questions.
> Clearly, behaviorally specific questions are more successful in prompting women who have been victimized to be counted as such.
What were the results of the NCWSV?
1) What percentage of college women were victimized?
2) How many roughly knew their assilants
3) out of 10, how many know their assiliants
4) What were the majority of the offenders to the victim
5) Where did the rapes take place.
> the data suggest that nearly 5% of college women are victimized in any given calendar year.
> most victims knew their assailants.
> In fact, 9 out of 10 offenders were known to the victims.
> the majority of the offenders were other classmates, friends, boyfriends, and ex-boyfriends.
> the majority of rapes took place in residences.
Often, these college rapes are facilitated by a variety of drugs. Although particular drugs have become known as date-rape drugs, most experts prefer what term for the assualt?
> the term drug-facilitated sexual assault
What are the three most common drugs that allow college rapists to commit drug-facilitated sexual assault? What are 4 reasons for why these drugs are used by rapists?
1) GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyric acid),
2) Rohypnol (flunitrazepam); and
3) ketamine (ketamine hydrochloride).
> These drugs often have no color, smell, or taste = easily added to flavored drinks
> They can affect a victim very quickly (but can vary)
> the drugs serve to render many victims helpless and unable to refuse sex.
> they hinder victims’ memories, so victims are unable to recall the victimization or adequately testify on their own behalf.
What drug (is legal) that can put a person at risk for unwanted sexual activity?
> This is particularly true for a legal drug (at least for those over 21 years of age)—alcohol.
> When under the influence of alcohol, it is harder to think clearly and evaluate a potentially dangerous situation.
> Drinking too much can also cause blackouts and memory loss, similar to the effects of the drugs discussed above.
What is important to remember about a victim that has drank alcohol prior to the victimization?
> they are NOT at fault for being assaulted
> if anything this impaired judgment makes a victim unable to consent to anything, including sex (which automatically makes it rape).
In about one in five rapes of college students, victims reported sustaining other injuries in addition to the rape injuries. These injuries are most often:
Hint: There are 6*
1) bruises,
2) black eyes,
3) cuts,
4) scratches,
5) swelling, or
6) chipped teeth.
What percentage of college rapes are reported?
> In fact, less than 5% of all campus rapes are reported.
Because of the increased vulnerability to rape and other crimes faced by college students, the U.S. Congress passed what act?
> the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act of 1990
What is the purpose of the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act of 1990?
> This legislation mandates that colleges and universities participating in federal student aid programs to prepare + distribute annual security reports
> The purpose of the report is to communicate campus security policies and campus crime statistics for each institution.
After the Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act of 1990 was revised (twice) - what was it renamed to? What did it require and what were the reports more likely to do?
> Renamed the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998.
> This act requires institutions to publish more-specific policies regarding awareness and prevention of sexual assault and also requires basic rights to be given to sexual assault victims.
> the reports are more likely to be indicators of the willingness of students in particular university settings to report their victimizations to authorities.
In 2014, President Obama and Vice President Biden together launched an effort to bring an end to sexual assaults on college campuses from the White House, called what? What did it fund and what were the two main takeaways from it?
> “it’s on us” program
> awarded several million dollars in grants to colleges in order to develop comprehensive campus sexual assault prevention and response programs.
> included programs to promote bystander intervention to encourage witnesses to step in and stop sexual assaults.
> colleges were required to use a “preponderance of the evidence” in deciding whether a student was responsible for sexual assault.
What administration got rid of the “it’s on us” framework?
Under the administration who was the specific secretary that scrapped it
> Under the Trump administration, however, the new Secretary of Education, Betsy Devos, has largely scrapped these policies, including allowing colleges to raise the standard of evidence to “clear and convincing evidence.”
> Secretary DeVos eliminated other changes, including the requirement that that investigations be completed in 60 days.
What is one noteable case of prison rape?
1) Who were they and what state did they try against?
2) What were they arrested for
3) What prision did they go to
4) What ranking did they have among 70 texas prisioners for experienced sexual assualt
5) How many pages of testimony were there?
> One such case was brought against the State of Texas by Roderick Johnson.
> he was arrested for burglary, writing a bad check, and cocaine possession.
> was sent to Allred, a maximum security prison in Texas, even though he had not committed a violent crime.
> Allred ranked second among the more than 70 Texas prisons in terms of the number of sexual assaults experienced by inmates.
> Nearly 300 pages of testimony detail the horrific acts
Provide 4 reasons for why estimates of prison rape are so hard to attain?
> very few empirical studies that have documented the incidence of rape and sexual abuse in prisons.
> very few of these victimizations are ever reported- cannot derive estimates from grievance reports from inmates.
> there is terrible stigma attached to becoming the victim of rape in prison due to a convict culture that prohibits such snitching behavior.
> “Snitches” or “rats” who inform on other inmates are considered the lowest members of the inmate hierarchy.
One study of sexual assault in prison conducted by Cindy Struckman-Johnson and her colleagues in Nebraska concluded how many inmates are raped?
> concluded that 22% of male inmates had been pressured or forced to have sexual contact against their will while incarcerated. Of these, over 50% had submitted to forced anal sex at least once
> Not a random selection of prisoners’ so it is not a definitive number - not representative.
Human Rights Watch obtained testimony from over 200 prisoners in 37 states and published its findings in a very graphic account of the reality of rape in prison called No Escape: Male Rape in Prison. Because their methodology did not include random sampling, state and national estimates could not be obtained from this study, but what emerged?
> important narratives and personal accounts of the brutality and fear that many inmates serving time in our nation’s prisons must face.
> The report helps to draw a picture of the dynamics of prison rape.
What physical characteristic’s were revealed to have a high risk of rape (from the No Escape: Male Rape in Prison Report)? What is someone labelled as once they have been victimized?
BY, S, W, EFM, S/P, LH, HPV, BV1.
> Being young
small,
white
effeminate
shyness/passivity,
long hair,
having a high-pitched voice.
> Once victimized, the victims run the risk of being labeled a “bitch” or “punk,” which puts them at greater risk of subsequent victimization.
