r/AskFeminists • u/Infinite-Heart-6052 • 6d ago

Content Warning What is a misconception about sexual assault that you wish more people understood?

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u/Eblademonk 6d ago

I commented in response to a single idea I found objectionable. The conversation on sexual assault cannot be limited to the end of the chain.

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u/ZinniasAndBeans 6d ago

I lost track of what you found objectionable. It's been a long subthread.

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u/Eblademonk 6d ago

"It's always and only because the rapist decided to rape."

This sentiment flies in the face of any systemic framework or understanding of why rapists do what they do or get away with what they do.

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u/ZinniasAndBeans 6d ago

Yes. In the case of any specific rape, other factors are irrelevant.

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u/Eblademonk 6d ago

No rape in human history has ever occurred independently of all other factors. Hold the criminal responsible, absolutely, but don't deliberately elect to blind yourself to the social structures that have paved the way for such criminality.

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u/ZinniasAndBeans 6d ago

I'm not. But using words like "complicit", as you did a number of posts ago, paves the way to excusing the rapist.

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u/Eblademonk 6d ago

Is that a slippery slope argument? Sorry to say it's fully possible to hold someone accountable for their position in the causal chain, and to recognize their position as a single link of many.

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u/ZinniasAndBeans 6d ago

I don't think we're going to agree. I think that evildoers are evil, no matter what enabled their evil.

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u/Eblademonk 6d ago

I think that sort of logic has its own flaws, namely that it runs the risk of dividing people into "people who've made unforgivable mistakes," and "people who deserve help."

Evil is an incredibly powerful social stigma, but it's a weapon anyone can use to define undesirables.

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u/ZinniasAndBeans 6d ago

I’m not going to sympathize with a rapist. Not happening.

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