I couldn’t help but promote this ad after reading this.
Much has been written about rapes and sexual assaults and women are blamed for it. The various reasons with which women are blamed are — she had been drinking, she had worn something revealing, she had engaged in some other kind of sexual contact with the rapist, etc. — which is not very surprising given the mentality of the society.
It seems like someone in the Scottish government decided to do something about it. Rape Crisis Scotland has launched the “Not Ever” campaign — the title referring to when, exactly, a rape victim is actually to blame for a rape.
The television ad focuses on the rape myth that women who dress a certain way are asking for it.
PS: If you can’t watch the video, here’s the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h95-IL3C-Z8
Transcript:
A scene of a party. A pale blond woman in her 20s stands talking to two men, one pale and one with darker skin. She wears a black top and sparkly blue skirt, and all parties hold drinks in their hands and appear to be having a good time.
Woman: (laughing playfully) You’re terrible! (laughs) You’re so bad! Shut up!Cut to two presumably white men across the room.
Man One: (looks at woman, sucks in air between his teeth) Check out the skirt! She’s asking for it.
Man Two: (laughs)Cut to scene of the same woman in a department store. She pulls two skirts off the rack, one the sparkly blue skirt she wears at the party, and takes turns holding up each one to her hips. A sales assistant, a pale middle-aged woman, walks up to her.
Sales Assistant: Can I help?
Woman: Yeah, thanks. I’m going out tonight and I want to get raped. (smiles) I need a skirt that will encourage a guy to have sex with me against my will. (holds up each skirt again)
Sales Assistant: (smiles eagerly and folds arms across chest) The blue one. Definitely the blue.
Woman: (nods and smiles)Woman turns and directly faces camera, with a sarcastic look on her face.
Woman: As if.
Male Voiceover: Nobody asks to be raped. Ever.
Maddie's Musings 