Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Feminism: chat

Original poster

Sexual assualt & the Holocaust

33 replies

Sickoffamilydrama · 15/11/2020 10:27

Don't know what I'm expecting from this post just more sharing my frustrations.

I've just finished reading Cilka's Journey which I know is fiction weaved around what facts & research could be found. I thought the author dealt well with the complexity of sexual violence and rape.

Anyway this lead me down the path of looking up the woman the book is based around to find her stepson is suing the author, mostly it looks like he's denying she was raped but I can't be certain as obviously not privy to the legal documents. The law allows him to sue so that's fair enough.

Looking at this I discovered that a lot of holocaust museums seem to deny or brush over sexual violence during that time and it has really frustrated me especially as it appears there's a lot of oral history of women talking about them witnessing other women being assaulted, they almost never say themselves were a victim which again is understandable. I understand there's a layer of shame around it all but it's really frustrated/saddened me that part of history isn't taken seriously and is effectively denied.

So I thought I'd share my frustrations with you all.

OP posts:
RuffleCrow · 15/11/2020 11:01

I wonder what grounds he's suing on ? Is he claiming defamation? Because that would imply that having been raped is held to reflect badly on the victim. I've read "Why Women Are Blamed For Everything" I'm not surprised.

user1294729492759 · 15/11/2020 10:59

I was shocked but not surprised that rape was only considered a war crime after '94

War crimes (like most crimes) have been determined by men though historically. So makes sense.

Our legal frameworks just reflect who has power and what they want to achieve.

I'm not sure some of the denial isn't from the shame of men who don't want to be seen as the "monsters" our society tends to categorise sexual offenders as. Plus men maintaining their power.

I share your frustration.

happytoday73 · 15/11/2020 10:55

The level of rape just after the war as troops were going through countries on their way home is also little spoke about

Steamfan · 15/11/2020 10:55

Christina Lamb wrote an article about Rape as a Weapon of War earlier this year - she also has a book "our Bodies, their Battlefields" Which I've not read

Original poster
Sickoffamilydrama · 15/11/2020 10:47

I've seen a few references to house of dolls not sure if my blood pressure can take reading it at the moment but definitely one I'll add to my list.

OP posts:
Original poster
Sickoffamilydrama · 15/11/2020 10:46

Yes I thought the same that the history is mostly written by men who wouldn't necessarily understand the complexities as easily.

I was shocked but not surprised that rape was only considered a war crime after '94 and Rhonda. I feel by hiding or denying it how can we help the survivors of today?

OP posts:
zaphodbeeble · 15/11/2020 10:40

House of Dolls is a book about the ‘joy divisions’ and the brothel at Auschwitz. There isn’t an awful lot written on this subject, the same with the mass rape of women by Russian soldiers or the ‘comfort women’ held by the Japanese. There was definitely a huge amount of shame felt at the time which made survivors unwilling to talk

Laserbird16 · 15/11/2020 10:33

The history books are written by men for men.

Women's experiences are not given the same weight as men and for a long time sexual assault was seen as shameful for women. The abuse by all parties in the second world war was not seen as an appropriate topic for discussion.

There were no white knights and I agree we need to talk about this. It breaks my heart when these atrocities are documented and they continue today in war zones.