Note To Self: Exploiting Rape Victims Is Wrong

by Michael Bear · 2009-02-25 18:35:00 UTC
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Wronging Rights, one of my favorite blogs, had a great piece yesterday, oh-so-gently expressing reservations about the forthcoming book Intended Consequences: Rwandan Children Born of Rape.

According to Wronging Rights:

"And probably, if I specialized in children affected by armed conflict, or was Amnesty bloody International, I would understand why it was a good idea to single women out as rape victims, without presenting anything more about their lives or identities. (Sad that you still live in poverty? Depressed because your whole family was murdered? Sorry, this exhibition is vaginas-only!)

Those five years of experience with UNICEF would probably have given me the information I need to differentiate between the lurid details described so carefully in each video, and the lurid details described in, say, rape-fantasy porn. Because right now, I see basically the same thing: women whose presentation to me starts and ends with the sexual trauma inflicted on them."

Which struck a nerve, seeing as how many of my posts about rape in Congo fall into exactly this trap, or at least follow a similar pattern - brutal story, horrible statistics, general feeling that evil runs riot in the world.

Haven't done such a good job of presenting rape victims as actual people.

Certainly something to keep in mind.

And, curious to hear if anyone has thoughts or suggestions on how best to cover rape in Congo and other unpleasant places.

(That said, my guest bloggers have done a much better job providing context - including Lizzie Goodfriend writing about women survivors of rape in Liberia, and Brooks Keene, Harper McConnell, Jocelyn Kelly and Kerry Gough writing about Congo.)

Finally, on a related note - using images of starving children to raise funds is also exploitative.  And yes, I'm talking about you, Concern.

Michael Bear
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