Dealing With and Identifying Date Rape

Rape is a very strong word. It is a word that many women feel uncomfortable saying when it comes to their own experiences. Many women have been raped and may not even know it. This is called date or acquaintance rape. Someone the victim knows or is aquatinted with commits this rape. The man who is committing this rape often doesn’t believe that he is committing a crime, but he is. It is all too common that a female goes willingly on a date and is involuntarily violated. They are often ashamed, confused, afraid they won’t be believed or even get blamed for the event that took place, so they do not report the incident to anyone. Teenage girls are especially at risk for date rape. 38% of all rape cases reported the victim’s range in ages fourteen to seventeen. This to me is a high percentage for such a small age range.

There are many sad stories of girls who have been violated by someone that they know. They almost all begin with a wonderful night and eventually get taken advantage of. The woman in the situation may feel as though she asked for it. The male may feel as though she didn’t say no, so if I do this I am doing nothing wrong. It is horrifying how many times this has happened to a woman. Men take their strong, masculine image and use it to their advantage. They may try to use guilt, lies and/or aggressiveness to get a girl to have sex him. If she declines and he still continues to persuade her to have sex with him, then he is committing a crime.

Tara was once in a situation that she felt to be fine. Tom, a guy she knew from school, had asked her out on a date. Unsuspecting she agreed to go. They went to a movie and on the way home they stopped on an abandoned road to talk. They talked for a little while and then Tom began to come on to her. Tara politely declined his gestures. Tom began to get angry and began touching Tara forcefully. Tara continued to tell him no, but Tom continued to force her to have intercourse. After he dropped her off at home and acted as though nothing had happened. Tara felt confused and ashamed. She had many unanswered questions and felt as though she had no one to turn to. She kept this incident to herself.

Tara should have reported this incident. What Tom did was called rape. She didn’t even think that what had happened was rape. If Tara had been more informed about the subject, Tom could have got in trouble by the police or even sent to jail. This happens to many women and many men walk away with no punishment for violating women’s rights.

Women need to watch out for themselves in sketchy situations. If she feels uncomfortable then she should try to avoid the situation before it is too late. Pushy men should not violate women. Rape doesn’t always have to a violent crime; it can also be almost subtle. If you or someone you know feel as though you have been date raped then you should tell someone about it. Date rape is all too common to avoid or feel ashamed about.

About the Author – Scott C. Waring has a BA degree in Elementary Education and a Masters Degree in Counseling Education. Please check out my novels George’s Pond, or West’s Time Machine, at most online bookstores.

Iuniverse bookstore: http://www.iuniverse.com/bookstore/book_detail.asp?isbn=0-595-41887-2

Amazon.com bookstore: http://www.amazon.com/Wests-Time-Machine-Scott-Waring/dp/0595418872