Evidence of Rape Culture

Trigger warning for rape talk and child abuse.

I, as many feminists, believe we live in a rape culture. For more about what I mean, check out my most recent post on the topic. Or just Google "rape culture," really...

So a couple of stories lately have illustrated how prevalent our rape culture is. The first is a story that is making it's way alllll around the feminist blogosphere. Basically, a fraternity at the University of Vermont sent it's members a "getting to know you" survey and one of the questions was, "If you could rape anyone who would it be?" I feel as if I shouldn't have to explain how this is evidence of rape culture so here I'll just link to a petition you can sign if you feel so moved.

The next piece of evidence is a little less obvious but even more disturbing to me. As reported on Shakesville:

...parents at Rosemount High in Minnesota who pranked their kids by blindfolding them and then making out with them: "And these are not just innocent pecks on the lips. The parents are intimately lip-locking their children for several seconds. One even progresses to rolling around on the gym floor. In another instance, a mother moves her son's hand south so he's grasping her butt."

To be clear: The kids were blindfolded. The parents were not. They knew they were kissing their kids, and they laughed uproariously as the kids were further embarrassed by being interviewed about what they thought of the kiss. "Luscious lips," answers one young man, before it is revealed he kissed his mother. My god.

I just. I--I don't even...This is such an extreme crossing of boundaries. It is child abuse. It's sexual abuse. It is inappropriate and only serves to prove the point that rape culture is so deeply entrenched that a group of adults at a school event could think it's appropriate to do this.

It almost makes me cry.