For generations, sexual violence has been positioned as a women’s issue, with prevention and education work mainly directed toward women and girls.
We know that women, girls, trans and non-binary people are the most frequent targets of sexual violence, with one in three women 15 years or older reporting at least one experience of sexual assault. These numbers can increase for people who are also impacted by other forms of systemic oppression, who often face additional risk factors.
Those at greatest risk of sexual violence regularly receive messages intended to increase safety: “don’t dress provocatively,” “take a buddy when you go out,” “don’t leave your drink unattended,” “stick to well-lit streets,” “don’t walk at night.” We’ve heard it all before. Most women, trans and non-binary folks integrate such safety precautions into our lives on a daily basis. While these messages may be well-intentioned, there is something vastly wrong with this approach.
First, it reinforces harmful victim-blaming ideas and myths about sexual violence, lending to the untrue and extremely harmful idea that if someone experiences sexual violence, they must be responsible in some way for failing to take the right safety precautions. This is a huge problem because we know that sexual violence is about power, not sex, and it is never the fault of the survivor.
Second, these types of prevention initiatives are focusing on the wrong population. By engaging with the people at risk of experiencing violence, prevention efforts are ignoring those most likely to engage in violent behaviours.
Bringing men into the conversation
Statistics show that, in many cases, the perpetrators of sexual violence are men. Given this fact, it’s clear that we need to fundamentally shift our understanding of sexual violence from a women’s issue to an issue that is of critical importance to all of us. We all have a role to play and a responsibility to make a change. In order to do this, we need to change the focus of our prevention initiatives to include strategies that are designed to decrease the likelihood that someone will commit an act of violence.
While it is true that men are the most likely perpetrators of sexual violence, this doesn’t mean that prevention efforts should generalize men in a negative light. That would be both unfair and ineffective. According to a survey done by the White Ribbon campaign, most men have positive attitudes toward ending sexual and gender-based violence and believe they can personally contribute to positive change. We need to engage men and boys in meaningful ways, as allies and caring humans who have a vested interest in ending sexual and gender-based violence.
Dismantling gender roles One of the most effective ways to engage men in this conversation is by taking a critical look at harmful gender roles and unpacking the ways they limit and negatively impact all of us regardless of our gender. We need to dismantle standards of masculinity and femininity that reinforce the idea that men must be strong, stoic, logical, dominant and sexually experienced, and women should be nurturing, emotional and responsive.
These repressive standards not only contribute to the systems that perpetuate violence, but they reinforce a binary view of gender and create unnecessary barriers to connecting with the full range of human experience. We all win when we are free to express our emotions, nurture one another and celebrate our strength in a way that is not defined by our gender.
Recognizing intersectionality
We must also recognize that sexual violence doesn’t exist in a vacuum; it is intrinsically connected with other systems of oppression such as patriarchy, colonialism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, sanism, poverty, and so many others. Each intersection has to be taken into consideration, each unique experience given a voice, as we engage in our pursuit of equity and social justice, because if we fail to do so, no real justice can be found.
As is the case when addressing all forms of oppression, we need to work towards a culture change. We need to actively dismantle the everyday narratives that normalize sexual violence and perpetuate stereotypes about sexual assault. As I often say, no one can do everything, but we can all do something.
Genevieve Weigel is a Sexual Violence Response Advisor for George Brown College. To learn more about support and resources available at George Brown, visit our Sexual Assault and Sexual Violence Policy, Prevention and Support web page.
