Mind Body Mama Explains It All ~ by Jay

Rape is never the fault of the woman who is raped.

And yet it makes sense to take precautions to reduce our risk of being assaulted.

Is this a contradiction? MindBodyMama explains why it is not, and in the process puts into words something I have always believed but have never been able to articulate.

In fact, there is a self-defense argument against getting falling down drunk.  A big piece of self defense is being the worst potential victim possible.  I live in a world where one in six women will be sexually assaulted in her lifetime.  Since that’s the world I have to move in, I don’t feel safe being sleepy, pukey, distracted and uncoordinated.   I’d prefer to stay sober and be alert, strong, aware, and prepared.

It’s a risk averse response to a treacherous reality.

If I went into a basement to avoid an air raid, would that make me responsible for the bombing?  If I evacuated from a coastal town ahead of a hurricane, would that make me responsible for the storm surge? 

Planning ahead for the possibility of violence against me is the sane, responsible, self-loving action of a queer female in a very dangerous world.   It does not, and never will, make the violence against me my fault.

 Read the whole post.