Rape jokes aren’t funny. They weren’t in 2012 when comedian Daniel Tosh said, “Wouldn’t it be funny if that girl [referring to an audience member who “heckled” him about rape jokes not being funny earlier in his set] got raped by, like, five guys right now? Like right now?” , and they still aren’t today.
In the United States, an American is sexually assaulted every two minutes, yet people still seem to think that joking about rape and sexual assault is okay. IT’S NOT.
I don’t know how many times I’ve heard someone say, “I need backup, I’m getting raped over here!”, or “Man, that test just raped me!”. Comparing rape to something slightly unpleasant makes rape seem less serious than it really is, which, to put it very simply, is not okay.
Our society has become so comfortable with the idea and subject of rape, that songs on the Top 100 list glorify it and Oscar-Award winners include sexual assault scenes just to add a ‘plot-twist’ or get more views.
I would love to be able to walk around and go to school, without hearing someone make an insensitive joke about rape. One of the most infuriating things to experience is when people say, “Can’t you take a joke?”, “Lighten up!”, or “You don’t have a sense of humor!”. These jokes have absolutely nothing to do with your sense of humor, and everything to do with the normalization of rape in our culture today.
As someone who has been affected by sexual assault, rape jokes are more than enough to make me have flashbacks that I try to avoid. It’s a type of joke that should be steered clear of, and although those who make these jokes may not realize that it’s something that is hurtful and relevant to my life and people’s lives around them personally, it’s still not okay.
Rape jokes aren’t a matter of trigger warnings and safe spaces, and it should go without saying that they are unacceptable and inconsiderate in any situation.
A study conducted by Thomas E. Ford from the SAGE Journal shows that when people are exposed to jokes about rape, men tend to start to view rape as normal and okay, and women start to see themselves as objects. Although jokes might not make a major impact on the world at large, they can greatly affect people in very personal ways.
Instead of letting people laugh at these jokes or look away with unease, encourage them to use their voice. It may create an uncomfortable conversation, but that is exactly the type of conversation we need to be having right now.
