Rape Counseling

The Evolution of Post-Rape Care

During the 1960s, rape became recognized in our legal system as a violent crime. Rape crisis centers were born out of the influence of grassroots feminism in the early 1970s. The National Organization for Women (NOW) was able to successfully legislate for the laws to change parts of the legal definition of rape around the mid-1970s. Some of these changes included the removal of “spousal exceptions;” implementing a rape shield law, which restricted the use of the victim's previous sexual history in court; recognizing the difference between consent and submission; excluding the need for a witness to the rape; and increasing the age of statutory rape from 10 to 12. In 1975, the National Center for the Prevention and Control of Rape at the National Institute of Mental Health was created, and much research was generated on the topic of sexual assault. Throughout the next couple of decades using legislature, the legal system, and mental health research, rape crisis centers established a niche in communities collaborating with other established social agencies. These centers became more respected in the communities and were even able to establish funding through grants, as well as state and federal sources. Many other programs have evolved out of these organizations to continue the improvement of help and legislature for all affected by rape, regardless of gender, age, sexual orientation, or circumstance.

All of these changes during the last 50 years have helped transform the definitions of rape from those that are very limiting and inhibiting to victim care, to those that are more clear and descriptive of this traumatic and life-changing situation. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the definition of forcible rape “is the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will. Attempts or assaults to commit rape by force or threat of force are also included; however, statutory rape (without force) and other sex offenses are excluded.” Other definitions of rape include “the nonconsensual oral, anal, or vaginal penetration obtained by force, by threat of bodily harm, or when the victim is incapable of giving consent.” And, interestingly, the multiple definitions of rape on the online resource http://www.dictionary.com include “the unlawful compelling of a woman through physical force or duress to have sexual intercourse;” “any act of sexual intercourse that is forced upon a person;” “an act of plunder, violent seizure, or abuse;” and “the act of seizing and carrying off by force.” Of note, all of these definitions include some form of “force,” and all imply a form of violence, lack of consent, and threat of harm.

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