ick neighborly ,a y- Heti^; e As 1 nixed. ^ay» August 9,1991 The Battalion Page ?) >00 asl 8o! ; le said. \ ' will get tl] sco, LA Opinion Attitudes about sex rape S, eir exhibit 31-29 and Los 'd play i eek and | filler won!; ' er s- Vw^tudies have shown that g to piece d ea st one out ever y f° ur women is splinter-e ra P ec l before they finish college, ct holdoutsItat's bght, one in four. Odds are pr | , imeone you know has been raped. In les anliftHajority of these rapes, the victim n _ n , “nows the rapist. This is known as ate rape or acquaintance rape. The ■ that rape is so common is sick, and Sine thing must be done to lower this Ttifying statistic. Before we can find a solution to this oblem, we must discover the causes, though I am not an expert, I will empt to enumerate some of the ctors I feel add to the rape problem in lie United States. The biggest problem is the ortance college-age men place on ting laid." After a date, the first g a young man is asked by his ends is "Did you get any?" lelevision and movies add to this pblem by glamorizing men who LL ERS Relocation plexes • 1-7869 ntil women and men are ated as equals, there can be no olution to the date rape roblem." ocessing isumes, nvelopes. s a week JLE M 6-3755 educe and sleep with many women, nstead of building a healthy attitude 3\^ard sex and dating, men see ■ping with a woman as a conquest, Achievement. This leads men to use ny means at their disposal, including |dlig and force, to achieve their ends: heap sex. As long as women are seen pbbjects to be used and disposed of, ftpe will continue to be common in our 3rd proc- ind editing ble at tes ^Another problem is that our society ells women to be sexy but not sexual. Vomen are encouraged to wear the —Tpis^hprtest, tightest dresses and to show sxai Ava.S. »)ff as much skin as possible. They are IT| t aught to use sex to lure men. •'^fTcwever, they are also told they tnot have sex. Besides creating ual hangups in many women, this ossible ideal of sexiness without | causes confusion in many men. | Almost every guy I know has had tome girl talking dirty to him, hanging leep >13 Ltd. Michael R. Cowen Columnist with him. Having to respond to mixed signals causes confusion and frustration in many men. They may think that she is "saying no when she really means yes" so that he won't think she is easy. Many will not care what she says and will add to the countless number of rapes committed each year. A third problem is that the victims of rape are often made to feel ashamed. Many people say "she deserved it" or "she really wanted it." This is ludicrous. No one should be forced to have sex against her will, regardless of what she is wearing or how she had been talking. Because of the shame rape victims feel, most rapes are never reported, leaving the rapist free to rape again. A solution to this problem will not be easy. Men have been raping women since the dawn of time. However, I have a suggestion that may help to diminish the problem. As a society, we need to stop making such a big deal about sex. If sex was accepted as a natural act between two people who love each other, instead of a sign of male prowess, men would not be under as much pressure to have sex, and date rapes might diminish. We also need to stop putting women under a double standard, forcing them to be "sexy but not sexual." This would mean finally giving up the Victorian idea that a woman is either a virgin or a whore. We also need to see rape victims as the victims of a crime of violence and treat them with sympathy, not shame. This will allow them to prosecute their rapists, instead of letting them go free. Finally, we need to treat women as thinking, sexual human beings, not as objects to be used and thrown away. Until women and men are treated as equals, there can be no solution to the date rape problem. Michael Cowen is a senior psychology major.