Hilary McCollum’s presentation

This is Hilary McCollum’s presentation from the Rape and Sexual Violence workshop at Feminism in London 2009.

Presentation in PDF format.

Rape and Sexual Violence Workshop Hilary McCollum London Feminist Network Conference 10 October 2009

About me
Activist worked on violence against women (VAW) for over 20 years

Introduction Fear of rape; Consequences for victim-survivors; Support victim-survivors need; Cultural stigma of being a victim of sexual violence; Limitations of victim and survivor identities; Activism

Hour, lots to pack in.

The focus of this workshop will be the extent and impact of rape and sexual violence on women and girls.

It will explore:

Rape and sexual assault is a difficult and painful issue for many of us, especially those of us who are survivors.
Survivor

Will be other survivors here. Not all of them will have talked to anyone about it, Some will have pushed it out of their minds. If workshop does trigger issues for any of you – get support. Phone your local rape crisis. Or a good friend.

Overview of structure – 20 min intro, then small groups, then feedback.

Sexual violence and VAW VAW – gender-based violence directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately Recognises the interconnections between different forms of VAW Human rights issue Cause and consequence of women’s inequality

VAW is a key gender equality and human rights issue.

• UN definition of VAW which is gender-based violence directed against a woman because she is a woman or that affects women disproportionately
• This definition covers violence against both adult women and girls and includes domestic violence, stalking, FGM, Forced Marriage, flashing, obscene phone calls, crimes in the name of honour, sexual harassment at work, in school or on the street. Also includes rape and incest.
• Can impact on virtually every sphere of women’s lives and this defn enables us to recognise the inter-connections between different forms of violence and develop a more cohesive approach to prevention and service provision.
• UN recognises that VAW is a cause and consequence of women’s inequality – it happens because women are unequal and results in the continued inequality of women.
• It is one of the most pervasive human rights abuses globally and in Britain.

Equality/human rights issue Extent – approx three-quarters of a million women in UK have been raped Impact Fear – restrictions

VAW is a key equalities issue. Reflects its significance in terms of extent, impact on individual women who have experienced it, and impact on women as a group.

Extent – 3 million women across Britain experience violence each year and many more are living with the legacies of previous abuse. According to BCS ¾ m have been raped at least once since 16. BCS does not include under 16s but more than a third of rapes reported to police are of under 16s.

Impact – losses – their home, their job, their ability to trust, their sense of self. It damages women’s physical and mental health. Extent of violence and the blame culture associated with it impacts on women as a group.

Fear of Rape Limits women’s lives Safety work Stereotypes about who gets raped and when But if you break the unwritten rules, BLAME!

Many women curtail their freedom because of their fear of violence, esp rape.

Amnesty poll

Impact Physical and mental health Life possibilities Further victimisation

Pregnancy, STDs. May be accompanied by physical assault. VAW, including rape, is a major cause of mental health problems in women including depression, anxiety, PTSD, attempted and successful suicide, It can lead to drug and alcohol abuse as a means of coping. Women who experience sexual assault in childhood are more likely to be revictimised in adulthood – both rape and domestic violence.

Impact ‘I can’t remember everything. I only remember little bits and pieces of what happened to me. They come to me at night, sometimes, when I’m trying to sleep, or sometimes they come when I am with my lovers, or sometimes they come for no reason at all, when I am feeding my cats or washing my dishes and looking out of the window into my garden.’

When talking about sexual violence, I always bring in voices of women who’ve experienced it. Helps challenge the silence.

Impact ‘I always feel alone to a certain extent, even when I’m surrounded by friends. I’m thankful that the ones who know and who remain my friends do their best to help when I’m in the midst of a breakdown. But I’m lost, and I want to be found. My spirit is as dirty as the palm of my hand, and I am ashamed. The world once loved me, but now it has forgotten my name. I’m out to tell it my name once more.’

Impact ‘I think about it every day. I think about the man who raped me every day. It doesn’t matter where I am or who I’m with. At some stage, and often for no more than a split second, I remember him and what he did to me. For that moment I am frozen.’

Impact ‘I felt this craving never to look at myself in a mirror again. This disgust with my own appearance has stayed with me.’

Impact ‘I did survive physically. I was very fortunate. I didn’t catch any awful disease. I didn’t get pregnant. But my mental survival has been harder. I have wasted so much energy blaming myself.’

Support women need To be believed To be heard To not be blamed To be ‘forgiven’ Recent assaults Historic assaults Dealing with the legacy

Rape myths False allegations Attacks by strangers are more serious Force Certain women/men Victim blaming Excusing perpetrator

Myth – false allegations common. Reality – no more than for other crimes. No criming. Women’s accounts minimise, include untruths – to stop from being blamed.

Stereotype – Most rapes are committed outside by strangers. Reality – Most rapes take place indoors, typically in the home of either the abuser or the victim.

Assaults by acquaintances and partners are ‘less serious’ than those by strangers.

Sexually assaults are deeply traumatic, whoever the perpetrator is. The betrayal of trust inherent in attacks by known men can be devastating. Most sexual assaults perpetrated by men and boys already known. Women who are raped by their partner are likely to be raped many times. Only a fifth by strangers. Stranger rapes more likely to be reported

Abuse only happens to certain types of women such as young ‘attractive’ women and in certain places such as big cities. Both offenders and victims come from all racial, cultural and occupational backgrounds. Victims can range in age from infants to elderly people although prevalence rates are higher for under 25s. Greater incidence for some groups eg disabled women. Assaults happen in rural , urban and suburban areas.

Women provoke violence because of how they dress or because they have been drinking. Targeting.

Perpetrators are influenced by their assessment of how easily they can intimidate their victim rather than by how a woman dresses or whether she’s been ‘flirting’.

Men who use violence are mentally ill or have psychopathic personalities.

The vast majority of sex offenders are not psychopaths and do not have a psychiatric disorder, although they may have a greater propensity for anger.

Men can’t control their sexual impulses.

Most rapists are motivated by power, anger and control, not sexual gratification.

Attacks are often planned, at least in part.

Under-reporting ‘After he left I couldn’t have spoken to anyone about [the rape]. No one. I could not face hearing my own voice talk about him, the thought of having to depict details, of having to describe again and again, what happened, how it happened, when all I craved was silence and to forget… That didn’t happen. The memories have proved intolerably resilient.’

Police emphasis is on false allegations. Real issue is under-reporting.

Combined with the low conviction rate, under-reporting means that many rapists offending repeatedly with no consequence – in fact only 1 in 100 get convicted.

Consent and sexual autonomy ‘I didn’t try to stop him. I didn’t fight. I’ve felt guilty about my lack of resistance ever since.’

Myths affect how women feel about their response

Rape myths – ‘she asked for it’ ‘He told me that if I tried to report him, the police would never believe me. After all, I looked like a tart. They would think I had asked for it and… if they ever found him, well, we’d been seen talking at the bar and he had mentioned to a couple of guys there that I invited him back later.’

And rapists know them too, and use them against their victims.

Victim and survivor identities I am a victim I am a survivor I am many other things

Have used victim and survivor interchangeably. A lot of feminists don’t use the term victim. Understand why but want to challenge it.

Victim – bad, survivor – good.

Some women die. Some women don’t recover.

Victims of other things OK – robbery, car crime. The stigma is with sexual violence, not being a victim per se.

Open up the space for women to talk – explore how they feel. Get to the point where they believe in their heart it wasn’t their fault.
Potential value of survivor.

Many other things too – not just victim/survivor.

Activism Challenge public bodies on their gender equality duty response Demand VAW strategy Support rape crisis Reclaim the Night Demand prevention programmes Challenge no-criming rates Challenge the porn culture Make VAW an election issue

Activism helped save my sanity, maybe even my life.

But beyond individual benefits, it’s also what changes the world.

Some examples.

Election of particular importance – there will be public sector cuts whoever gets in and need to make sure that improving responses to rape and sexual violence is a priority for future spending.