Rape, History of

Rape has always been a gendered victimization throughout the world. This means that the victims are overwhelmingly one gender—female. While many rapes are committed by strangers, researchers have found that most rapes are committed by acquaintances. These acquaintances may be individuals familiar to the victim, including current or former dating intimates and spouses or relatives. However, U.S. culture has historically defined rape as stranger-on-stranger crime, and the American legal system has addressed this crime using this myth. Reliance on this rape myth has ...