#MeToo

I am going to start off by saying this blog post won’t be long but it will be important. There has been a social movement as of late where women who have been sexually assaulted or harassed have come out and said “Me Too”. Why? Because the world needs to understand that women are in a place where they have learned to live with blatant harassment, mistreatment and rape awareness. I say rape awareness because if you ask any woman, they have developed what is called Rape Schedule.

It is all the things we do on a daily basis to avoid sexual assault without event thinking about it; it’s clutching your keys between your fingers just in case you have to disable someone, it is talking on the phone while walking outside a store/gym/home until you get to your car just in case “something happens”, it is dressing a certain way to make sure you arent objectified, it is not making eye contact with strange men because you don’t want to “give them a reason”. These are just SOME of the actions women perform on a daily basis to avoid rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment.

But why does it have to be this way?

Because we were RAISED to think this way.

We are raised to be aware that slut shaming is a thing, we are raised to not speak out because victims must have done something to promote unwanted advances, we are raised to watch what we say because a man/woman might retaliate in a sexual way, we are raised with the media telling us what women are doing wrong instead of what other women and men are doing wrong. Where does it stop? Where does rape culture end?

Here are 9 things women are supposed to do to avoid rape (via ThinkProgress.org)

Get married.
Take a self defense class.
Drink less alcohol.
Wear more clothing.
Stop taking public transportation.
Make it seem like less fun to be a rape victim.
Buy special underwear.
Download a GPS tracking app.
Carry a gun.

Why are women supposed to take precautions when instead we should be teaching our boys to respect women, their boundaries, their vocalized opinions, and their RIGHT TO SAY ‘NO’.

If you aren’t SHOOK at every woman who is saying #MeToo. You should be. Raise your son’s to respect women, raise your women to respect women! Sexual assault/harassment isn’t always rape. It’s cat calling, its unwanted touching, it’s calling her baby, it’s saying sexual innuendos, it’s calling her a bitch, its calling her a slut, it’s EVERY instance where your rhetoric is UNWANTED.

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault or harassment, reach out to RAINN.org.

RAINN’S MISSION

RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) is the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization. RAINN created and operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline (800.656.HOPE, online.rainn.org y rainn.org/es) in partnership with more than 1,000 local sexual assault service providers across the country and operates the DoD Safe Helpline for the Department of Defense. RAINN also carries out programs to prevent sexual violence, help survivors, and ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice.