I'm not shocked like most of the world.
That's basically it. That's why this happened.
Of course self-aware individuals acknowledging that fact isn't enough to stop this from happening.
We each need to question ourselves, our thoughts, our preconceptions and prejudices.
We need to teach young men, from an early age, to respect a woman's bodily autonomy.
We need to teach young men about enthusiastic consent.
We need to teach young men that rape and sexual assault is a crime, no matter how you frame it.
We need to challenge misogynistic behaviour.
We need to challenge rape culture.
We need to raise our children to stand up to rape and misogyny, not sit by idly.
We need to let people know that rape is rape. That there is no middle ground. Rape, all rape, is an act of violence and power. All rape, no matter who the fuck the victim is, is a crime. Rape is real.
We need to educate people about the statistics. We need to let people know that false accusations of rape are incredibly rare and they are no more abundant than false reports of any other crime. We need to let people know that one in four women will experience sexual violence in their lifetime.
We need to teach people about the trauma - physically and mentally - that rape causes.
We need to teach people that there is not one reaction to being raped.
We need to stop teaching our daughters how not to get raped and start teaching our sons not to rape.
We need schools to address these issues.
We need to teach our children empathy and basic human decency.
We need to teach our children about how to support a victim of sexual violence.
We need to hold rapists accountable for their actions.
We need to hold those who let rape happen accountable.
We need to stop thinking that talent mitigates rape.
We need to challenge our society that sees women as sex objects.
We need to actually talk to our children. We need to stop being scared of talking to our children about sex and rape because it's a little bit embarrassing - we need to address these issues. We need to stop assuming that they will be addressed in the class room because they are not.
Until we do this, and do it properly, women will continue to be raped. Steubenville will happen again, again, again and again.
Let's not forget about this case just because two of the boys were convicted. Let's all channel that outrage and shock into changing the world so that it doesn't happen again, but when it does, the perpetrators are held to account and the victims are supported.
Although I say children above because I'm talking about Steubenville, we need to educate our family, our friends, our colleagues, our peers - everyone. Rape obviously isn't only accepted, perpetrated and condoned by teenagers - if we go back to Steubenville you'll know that many of the adults in the case failed the victim completely.
What happened in Steubenville is not a unique event. It was not an anomaly. The attitudes of the young men involved in this case are not rare. The attitudes of the adults involved in this situation are not also sadly not rare.
Steubenville is happening every day. All over the world.
Young, drunk women are being assaulted and it's seen as a 'joke' - not real rape. They are held responsible for what happened to them. Studies show that around a quarter of people in Scotland believe that a woman is responsible for her assault if she was drunk or wearing a short skirt.
Let's start at the beginning: Sex without consent is rape. It's as simple as that. The law is very clear on that matter. With the changes made to the Sex Offences Act (2009) in Scotland it specifically outlines that if one's ability to consent is impaired - including through alcohol - then it is rape.
For some reason some people find that hard to understand, the law doesn't say a drunken, consenting, albeit regretted, one-night stand is rape. It says sex with someone who is incapacitated through alcohol is rape. It surely isn't that hard to tell the difference? If she is lying in a pile of vomit, unable to stand up, unconscious, asleep etc... then do not have sex with her. If she doesn't consent then do not have sex with her. Simple? I think so.
We need to look further though - why do young men think that this kind of behaviour is acceptable? Henry Rollins wrote a blog entry specifically about the Steubenville case which I found interesting, he poses important questions.
What made these young people think that that what they did was ok? What was in their upbringing, the information and morals instilled in them that allowed them to do what they did, minute after minute, laughing, joking, documenting it and then calling it a night and going home? Out of all the people who were witness to what happened, why wasn't there someone putting a stop to it?We live in a culture that accepts misogyny and rape; a culture that promotes it, encourages it and rewards it.
That's basically it. That's why this happened.
Of course self-aware individuals acknowledging that fact isn't enough to stop this from happening.
We each need to question ourselves, our thoughts, our preconceptions and prejudices.
We need to teach young men, from an early age, to respect a woman's bodily autonomy.
We need to teach young men about enthusiastic consent.
We need to teach young men that rape and sexual assault is a crime, no matter how you frame it.
We need to challenge misogynistic behaviour.
We need to challenge rape culture.
We need to raise our children to stand up to rape and misogyny, not sit by idly.
We need to let people know that rape is rape. That there is no middle ground. Rape, all rape, is an act of violence and power. All rape, no matter who the fuck the victim is, is a crime. Rape is real.
We need to educate people about the statistics. We need to let people know that false accusations of rape are incredibly rare and they are no more abundant than false reports of any other crime. We need to let people know that one in four women will experience sexual violence in their lifetime.
We need to teach people about the trauma - physically and mentally - that rape causes.
We need to teach people that there is not one reaction to being raped.
We need to stop teaching our daughters how not to get raped and start teaching our sons not to rape.
We need schools to address these issues.
We need to teach our children empathy and basic human decency.
We need to teach our children about how to support a victim of sexual violence.
We need to hold rapists accountable for their actions.
We need to hold those who let rape happen accountable.
We need to stop thinking that talent mitigates rape.
We need to challenge our society that sees women as sex objects.
We need to actually talk to our children. We need to stop being scared of talking to our children about sex and rape because it's a little bit embarrassing - we need to address these issues. We need to stop assuming that they will be addressed in the class room because they are not.
Until we do this, and do it properly, women will continue to be raped. Steubenville will happen again, again, again and again.
Let's not forget about this case just because two of the boys were convicted. Let's all channel that outrage and shock into changing the world so that it doesn't happen again, but when it does, the perpetrators are held to account and the victims are supported.
Although I say children above because I'm talking about Steubenville, we need to educate our family, our friends, our colleagues, our peers - everyone. Rape obviously isn't only accepted, perpetrated and condoned by teenagers - if we go back to Steubenville you'll know that many of the adults in the case failed the victim completely.
