Grrr. Guardian article on rape in pubs and clubs.

[LRDtheFeministDragon]

Oh, damn.

www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/oct/10/pubs-clubs-closed-rape-crackdown

I was just reading this article and thinking, great, this sounds like a good idea. They're planning to target pubs and clubs where high levels of rape and sexual assault are reported, to shut them down. Great. Then I hit this line, which is one of their aims:

'? A hard-hitting prevention campaign to target male behaviour and speak to women about reducing their vulnerability.'

Fuck the fuck off, will you?!

Personally I think that the message to both men and women alike, regardless of mental health or age should be:
How to drink responsibly.
Don't get so pissed that you don't know where you are , who you are with, and what you are doing
Stay with your group of friends and operate a buddy system so if someone is pissed out of their heads they have someone relatively coherent with them until they are safe at home in bed with a bucket propped under their heads.
Know in advance how you are getting home, and stick to it
This would not only eliminate many sexual assaults but also prevent road accidents from drunks staggering into the path of oncoming vehicles and many other alcohol related incidents which take up far too much police and ambulance/a&e time!

roger - would it 'eliminate' sexual assualts, though?

My understanding is that a lot of homeless women get raped, simply because they don't have anywhere else to go.

A 'lot' of sexual assaults happen from men who're known to the women, not strangers.

I do agree we all need advice about sensible drinking/buddy systems. And as you say, this could very helpfully include advice about how to deal with a drunk friend.

I just don't think it should be making out that it will protect women from rape. It won't.

No, It won't eliminate sexual assaults, IMO nothing ever will. There will always be people out there who find having power over others sexually arousing, and this leads to sexual assault on both men and women, of all ages.
What it will do is reduce the incidence in pubs and clubs by reducing opportunity for such people. much easier for someone drunk, on their own to be persuaded outside where there are no witnesses, or followed home, than someone who is accompanied by a not so drunk person who is able to see the dangers.

I don't see how that's a good thing, though?

If the net result is women who're vulnerable in other ways get raped, all we're doing is making a slight change to the demographics of who's most likely to get raped. It feels like going in circles to me.

The whole thing is shite.

I was assaulted in a club, quite severely, the staff didn't want to know I was far from vulnerable but was treated like an idiot even my friends didn'tunderstsn how serious it was he did it to control and humiliate me I was not vulnerable

That's awful, ledkr. I'm so sorry.

I do think staff at clubs should have the same responsibility in this area as they do with, say, fights - that seemed a really positive side of this new plan.

Thanks, it's funny but its been ony mind a lot recently with the savile stuff my dh had helped me loads to get my head around it. The staff seemed to just assume I was a drunk woman who didn't know what I was saying they put me on a taxi home whilst I was sobbing,these was a fireman on a stag do I so wish I'd called the police

God, that's horrible.

I would think you still could report it? I think even if it's a long time ago, you could.

I think the Savile stuff is bringing up demons for lots of people.

Ledkr I'm so sorry.

Roger I think a number of women have been raped or assaulted by a male friend or acquaintance who offered to walk them home. I think your buddy system plan is a good one to reduce road accidents though.

Too late it was 7 years ago. It's men who need educating to respect women and not see them as perspective shags, that education comes from home and society. See us as people and stiff like that would reduce drastically

Amen to that.