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Mercy Ngwebvu
MANY a time, the way women dress is routinely cited as an enticement to rape. References to sheer and clinging fabrics, low-slung jeans and low-cut tops, bare midriffs, short skirts and liberally applied make-up are common whenever the issue of why women are raped is brought up.
Women are often judged on the basis of the way they present themselves, as though the presence of a bra or a bright shade of lipstick might have made all the difference between an uneventful occasion, and one on which a sexual assault took place.
The assumption that such choices can lead to rape; and that clothes can speak for women are extremely damaging.
Although she is the victim and complainant in any case, which means that there is every chance she has been raped, it is the woman, and not her alleged attacker who is held up for public examination.
Scrutinising the way in which a woman dresses in the event of rape is one of many ways in which common myths and prejudices are exploited in order to damage her reputation and credibility.
Although the perpetrator’s behaviour and intentions are of far more relevance than any clothing, oftentimes they never get to account for their choices or behaviour. Instead there are many cases where rapists are acquitted despite being guilty of rape.
A woman’s outfit is used to discredit her reputation and suggests she is the “sort of woman” unlikely to refuse consent to sex.
If anything, however a woman chooses to dress is no invitation to rape from rowdy men who cannot keep their zippers up.
Instead of judging women harshly (when in fact they are the victims in most cases), sometimes people should be more objective and open minded when it comes to dealing with issues affecting women.
People could start by challenging the assumptions about women and dress, as well as woman-blaming attitudes that centre on their appearance.
When dealing with these issues, people should stop thinking in terms of “respectable” women and those who are “asking for it” because no woman wants or deserves to be raped, and every woman who is sexually assaulted is entitled to justice without having to suffer humiliation or the destruction of her privacy, dignity and self esteem.
If the woman asks for it, then why would they go to all the trouble of reporting the case to the police, sometimes even going through the stress of a court case?
Do not try to second guess the significance of a woman’s dress or conduct.
Women are entitled to make whatever choices they please when choosing what to wear — just as men are free to choose whether or not to commit a rape.
People should desist from the habit of imposing their own values or codes on someone else — you may consider the way a woman has decided to present herself as inadvisable but you have no right to judge her as less worthy of consideration than you would be.
Instead of telling ourselves that the way a woman dresses invites rape, we should also start asking ourselves this question: ‘What does the assumption that dress can contribute to rape say about men?’
Plausibly, it means they are so completely unable to control their sexual behavior. That it is quite possible for them to launch a sexual attack if sufficiently provoked at any time? Is this how men want to see themselves? Or how they want the world to view them?
Men should actually be offended when someone claims that someone should prevent rape by not wearing certain clothes because that line of thinking presumes that they are utterly incapable of control.
It also presumes that men are so uncivilised that it takes extraordinary effort for them to walk down the streets without raping someone.
It remains unjustifiable for anyone to defend the view that some women deserve less consideration and protection than others.
Online Reporter