Social Issue

The social issue I've chosen is rape. Like most people, I believe that rape is wrong and immoral. The truth is the pleasure given to those who commit rape is caused by a lack of power and love from their own childhood rather than the common misconception of the sexual desire.  According to https://www.rainn.org 1 out of 6 American women have been the victim of an attempted or will have been raped (14.8% completed rape; 2.8% attempted rape). As for men, the number is 1 out of 33.

Due to rape culture, men and women feel too ashamed to report these sexual assaults and rapes. Therefore, only 60% are reported and only 3% (https://www.rainn.org) actually spend any time in jail. Those who are raped are usually assaulted with questions like, "what were you wearing?" and "did you provoke the rapist at all?". Instead of having empathy for victims, people usually shame them into thinking they are the cause for the assault. 

To solve this social issue, schools, parents, and media should be teaching the youth to respect one another and look at men, women, gays, lesbians, and others as equals. The cultures and practices of individual peoples should be embraced rather than singled out and taught separately. In doing so, people would look each other as equivalents. That would solve a portion of the power aspect.

Also, education in general can resolve the problem of rape. Having an education, and then a decent income, makes a person far less likely to commit crimes in general. Improving the education system and offering a lot of assistance to those who want to pursue more is the solution to rape. Studies show in Canada that for every dollar invested in early childhood education, it yields $1.50 later on.

Rape, as an inhumane act, flabbergasts me as how it is committed in this day and age. I cannot wrap my mind around the concept of intentionally causing harm and mishaps to others. Once someone is raped or sexually assaulted, it causes the victim to be permanently scarred. Many victims turn to self medication like the use of alcohol, drugs, diets, etc to try and cope with what has happened to them. In addition, many stereotypes are created and used against innocent individuals. In all, rape does not benefit society as a whole and instills fear in the youth, women, and people of lesser power.