It is rape
Natalie Schutz
Issue date: 4/29/09 Section: Opinions
After overhearing exchanges and some very close conversations with my friends, it has recently come to my attention that students are not taking the severity of sexual assault and alcohol seriously at Lewis University.
My main point in writing this is-if one is intoxicated, they cannot give consent for sex. Therefore, it is rape.
It is not the victims' fault if they were drunk at the time nor is it their fault that they were in a relationship of any kind with the person who they became a victim to.
If there is no consent, it is rape.
I, like many, never imagined that I would know anyone that was raped. I thought that only happened to girls who lived utterly scandalous lifestyles with some kind of proverbial ticking clock around their neck before "it" happened. However, I have realized that this false perception; myself and many college students sadly could have not be farther from the truth.
Rape is not something anyone should ever joke about. It will not just happen as someone is walking through a dark parking lot. In fact, rape can happen to anyone, most likely behind closed doors and in the arms of someone that they know and possibly even trust.
College students have the horrible disadvantage of having alcohol so pertinent in their lives. Therefore, it may seem ordinary to go to a party, drink too much and not remember the rest of the story-until a student wakes up and realizes they only vaguely know the person they are lying in bed naked with. When one gets intoxicated, it does not act as an invitation for consent- free sex.
They can only guess what happened. If one person remembers and was aware of what was happening; took advantage of the situation while the other was noticeably drunk, it is rape.
I'm going to go out on a ledge and say this happens quite a bit at Lewis as well as colleges in general.
Why don't we hear about it more?
Maybe the victims are embarrassed and think it is their fault since they were drinking so they don't call it rape. Maybe the victims can't exactly piece together what happened, but they're almost positive that they had sex, so they don't call it rape. Maybe they figure "What the heck?" They had sex before, so this doesn't mean that much….right...so they don't call it rape.
But it is rape.
Yet, it can really hurt. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But maybe later when that person wants to settle down and they think of that person they took advantage of or that took advantage of them-either way, passionate sex that is consent free and commitment free will hurt emotionally some time.
But it is rape and therefore there is hope and help here and Lewis and elsewhere. The Center for Health and Counseling can help one go through the legal, judicial or emotional (whatever the victim wants to go through…it's TOTALLY up to them) procedures to deal with these issues. Local Guardian Angel Community Services in Joliet also offers services for sexual assault victims free of charge.
For more information, please contact the confidential Center for Health and Counseling at 815-836-5455 or Guardian Angel Services at www.guardianangelhome.org.
My main point in writing this is-if one is intoxicated, they cannot give consent for sex. Therefore, it is rape.
It is not the victims' fault if they were drunk at the time nor is it their fault that they were in a relationship of any kind with the person who they became a victim to.
If there is no consent, it is rape.
I, like many, never imagined that I would know anyone that was raped. I thought that only happened to girls who lived utterly scandalous lifestyles with some kind of proverbial ticking clock around their neck before "it" happened. However, I have realized that this false perception; myself and many college students sadly could have not be farther from the truth.
Rape is not something anyone should ever joke about. It will not just happen as someone is walking through a dark parking lot. In fact, rape can happen to anyone, most likely behind closed doors and in the arms of someone that they know and possibly even trust.
College students have the horrible disadvantage of having alcohol so pertinent in their lives. Therefore, it may seem ordinary to go to a party, drink too much and not remember the rest of the story-until a student wakes up and realizes they only vaguely know the person they are lying in bed naked with. When one gets intoxicated, it does not act as an invitation for consent- free sex.
They can only guess what happened. If one person remembers and was aware of what was happening; took advantage of the situation while the other was noticeably drunk, it is rape.
I'm going to go out on a ledge and say this happens quite a bit at Lewis as well as colleges in general.
Why don't we hear about it more?
Maybe the victims are embarrassed and think it is their fault since they were drinking so they don't call it rape. Maybe the victims can't exactly piece together what happened, but they're almost positive that they had sex, so they don't call it rape. Maybe they figure "What the heck?" They had sex before, so this doesn't mean that much….right...so they don't call it rape.
But it is rape.
Yet, it can really hurt. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But maybe later when that person wants to settle down and they think of that person they took advantage of or that took advantage of them-either way, passionate sex that is consent free and commitment free will hurt emotionally some time.
But it is rape and therefore there is hope and help here and Lewis and elsewhere. The Center for Health and Counseling can help one go through the legal, judicial or emotional (whatever the victim wants to go through…it's TOTALLY up to them) procedures to deal with these issues. Local Guardian Angel Community Services in Joliet also offers services for sexual assault victims free of charge.
For more information, please contact the confidential Center for Health and Counseling at 815-836-5455 or Guardian Angel Services at www.guardianangelhome.org.
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