The Cultural Blind Spot



Let there be no confusion - men are victims of rape and they have LONG been overlooked and underacknowledged as victims of rape.

The Uniform Crime Report definition of rape, before recent changes, enabled a cultural blind spot.  According to the former language, men could not be victims of rape.  The old definition, right out of 1927, was: “the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will.”

This change is but a small one in the direction of creating space for men and boys to disclose sexual abuse/assault/violence against them - the next step is up to each of us.

New York Times recently ran a story on men as victims of rape - you can read it here.

The Rape Recovery Team serves ALL victims of rape - women AND men.  There will be no cultural blind spots here.

Defriending My Rapist


This New York Times Opinion Piece gave us chills in the office and beyond that, rekindled our spirit for the work we do.  Defriending My Rapist is the story of a woman who carefully silenced herself for years lest she be forced to speak of the horror she endured on the night she was raped by five male teenagers.

Everyday we hear new stories but we have learned, after much time and experience, to NEVER believe we have heard it all or heard the worst.  Rather, we brace ourselves after each story takes our breath and we dig in heels that we beg not to fail us knowing the 'worst' is undefined and will always take the shape of the one we are hearing from and holding space for at that very moment in time.

For this woman, the mob of teenage rapists - their faces, their words, their violence - lived on in her mind and then at once, she is confronted with a friend request on Facebook from one of them.

What she decided to do is the climax of this story - please take the time to read.