Sexualized violence

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sexualized violence and sexualized abuse of power describe acts with a sexual connection without the consent or ability of the person concerned to consent. In particular, they take precedence over offenses such as sexual assault , rape and sexual abuse of children . Sexual violence is secondary to physical violence ( e.g. bodily harm and mistreatment of wards ) and psychological violence.

The expression “violence” corresponds to the assessment that the perpetrators are not victims in the sense of missteps and the victims are not accomplices in the sense of provocateurs . Psychological trauma with psychosomatic consequences is also expressly included as a consequence of violence . The boundaries between violence and abuse of power are fluid. The definitions are not congruent with the criminal offenses; many feminist-oriented groups and organizations claim z. B. a power of definition for those affected.

Today it is generally recognized that there are female and male victims in children, adolescents and adults, as well as male and female perpetrators. But for example, 99 percent of the perpetrators of sexual violence against women are men. And even with sexual violence against men, men are more often named as perpetrators. Sexual harassment is one of the most common forms of violence against women .

Over the decades, society's evaluation of many types of sexual misconduct has shifted. What used to be repulsed with a perpetrator-victim reversal or was judged to be the offender's outrageous behavior is now viewed as criminal and reported. This increases the willingness to report . There is also a slow decline in cases.

to form

According to this definition, the forms of sexualised violence in childhood and adolescence and adulthood include, for example:

  • Unintentional touching, kissing or taking on your lap
  • Sexual harassment and harassment
  • Urging or forcing sexual intercourse or sexual acts
  • Urging or forcing to watch or participate in pornographic acts in photography, film or internet chat
  • Threats if the victim fails to engage in sexual activity
  • Marriage of underage women
  • prostitution

Sexualized violence in wars and genocides

In science and international justice, sexualised war violence was marginalized and naturalized as an inevitable part of wars until the 1990s. The fact that rape is also used strategically as a weapon of war to humiliate women and men and destroy entire communities was overlooked.

For example, there was mass rape in the genocide in Bangladesh . The total number of rape crimes is estimated at 200,000 to 400,000 , according to Gendercide Watch . Many girls and women were raped publicly in front of their families. Many then committed suicide. Many were rejected by their families in order to protect family honor after the rape. After gaining independence, the new government of Bangladesh, together with the International Planned Parenthood Federation, set up rehabilitation centers in Dhaka and other parts of the country, where the women received medical care and abortions.

Sexual harassment in Germany

The Federal Ministry for Families, Seniors, Women and Youth published a representative study in 2004 which showed that a total of 58.2% of all women questioned had experienced sexual harassment. Almost half (49%) of the women who stated that they had been sexually harassed before have already experienced situations in which they felt seriously threatened or feared for their personal safety. In addition, 9% of women who had experienced sexual harassment reported that one or more situations led to involuntary sexual intercourse or physical violence.

Consequences of sexual violence

Sexual violence has serious consequences for the body and soul. 44% of women who have experienced sexual violence sustained physical injuries. The proportion of women who suffer from psychological consequences after sexual violence is particularly high (78.8%). The most common symptoms are: low spirits and depression , feelings of guilt and shame, constant brooding and insomnia , as well as a negative impact on self-esteem and interpersonal relationships.

Prevention

The main content of the prevention work at the primary school aims at strategies of resistance against violence and aids in uncovering violence. In particular, this includes the child's knowledge of:

  • the child's right to determine their own body,
  • the perception of feelings / trust in one's own intuition,
  • the distinction between "good", "bad" and "weird" touches,
  • the child's right to say no if someone touches them in a way they do not like,
  • the existence of "good" and "bad" secrets,
  • Support offers for the child,
  • sex education.

The topic is particularly relevant in the field of sport for children and young people. The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) points out the danger of sexualized assaults by abusing the closeness and attachment that arise in sport ( see also: Chapter "Sexual harassment", section "Sexual assault in school and sport "). The DOSB underlines the need to speak “openly and without false shyness” in sports clubs and associations about sexualized violence and emphasizes: “The board of a sports organization must convey in a credible manner that every form of sexualized violence and border crossing as well as derogatory, sexist statements, looks and Actions will not be tolerated. Such a climate of early, open and regulated handling of border violations is also the best way to prevent all forms of sexual violence. "

Sports trainers explain that physical contact with children and adolescents can be adequate in certain situations, for example when it comes to giving help with gymnastics , correcting posture or giving consolation. The Landessportbund Berlin (LSB) and Sportjugend Berlin also differentiate between normal and cross-border physical contact .

In order to prevent criminals and people with unfair intentions from getting into the vicinity of children through an activity in sports and abusing their trust, the LSB and the Sportjugend Berlin call on the sports clubs and sports associations to participate in a child protection declaration, which may include a. the self-commitment contains only professionally qualified persons in the youth sector and in particular to require an extended police clearance certificate.

Sociobiological view

Sexual violence has been observed in many species of mammals, birds, insects, and fish. In the case of Bornean orangutans , which - like humans - belong to the group of humans , the majority of mating is said to come about through violence. Michael Schmidt-Salomon advocates looking at socially ostracized behavior such as rape from a sociobiological perspective as an evolutionary survival strategy. Not in order to legitimize them, but because it offers the opportunity to take effective countermeasures to curb such behavior.

See also in the English language Wikipedia en: Sexual coercion among animals and en: Sociobiological theories of rape .

See also

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d Violence against men in Germany. Pilot study, July 2004 ( online ; PDF; 7.4 MB) pages 20, 62, 113, 153.
  2. ↑ About "Power of Definition". Blog of the Antisexism Alliance, March 14, 2008 ( online )
  3. ↑ Wildwasser Wiesbaden, Christa Oppenheimer: What does the work against sexual violence have to do with feminism? (PDF; 167 kB) , p. 9.
  4. ↑ a b Prof. Dr. Ursula Müller, Dr. Monika Schöttle: The living situation, safety and health of women in Germany . Ed .: Federal Ministry for Family, Seniors, Women and Youth. ( bmfsfj.de [PDF]).
  5. ↑ Michael Tonry: Why Crime Rates Are Falling Throughout the Western World . In: Crime & Justice . tape 43 , no. 1 , 2014, p. 8 , doi : 10.1086 / 678181 (English, alternative full text access : scholarship.law.umn.edu ).
  6. ↑ Violence Against Women: The Facts . UNRIC , accessed January 23, 2016.
  7. ↑ To what extent are professional prostitutes victims of sexual violence? . Leuphana University of Lüneburg , accessed on September 9, 2019.
  8. ↑ Deutschlandfunkkultur.de, Andreas Baum, Humiliated, humiliated, ashamed , February 14, 2018
  9. ↑ Gendercide Watch: Genocide in Bangladesh, 1971. In: gendercide.org. February 22, 1971. Retrieved January 19, 2015 .
  10. ^ Gerhard Klas: The bloody birth of Bangladesh. from March 25, 2011, SWR2.
  11. ^ Samuel Totten, William Spencer Parsons: Centuries of Genocide. Routledge, 2013, ISBN 978-0-415-87191-4 , p. 257.
  12. ↑ Memory and the present: 40 years of Bangladesh's independence (PDF) In: Netz - Bangladesch Zeitschrift Nr. 1, 33rd volume, from February 28, 2011.
  13. ↑ BMFSFJ - Sexual Harassment. Retrieved November 23, 2017 .
  14. ↑ Section “Prevention in School” in the “Sexualized Violence” chapter. In: Online handbook violence prevention for primary schools. "We strengthen you eV" and "Institute for Peace Education Tübingen eV" (cooperation project), accessed on September 14, 2015 .
  15. ↑ For respect and appreciation - against sexual violence in sport. German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB), November 27, 2013, accessed on September 14, 2015 .
  16. ↑ Iris Röll: Are teachers still allowed to comfort children? Page 6: Sports trainer: "It doesn't work without physical contact". Focus, May 12, 2010, accessed September 14, 2015 .
  17. ↑ Body contact in sport is normal !? - Crossing borders. Landessportbund Berlin and Sportjugend Berlin, accessed on September 14, 2015 .
  18. ↑ Cooperation for child protection. Landessportbund Berlin and Sportjugend Berlin, accessed on September 14, 2015 .
  19. ↑ Garner, SR, Bortoluzzi, RN, Heath, DD & Neff, BD Sexual conflict inhibits female mate choice for major histocompatibility complex dissimilarity in Chinook salmon . Proceedings: Biological Sciences 277, 885-894 (2010).
  20. ↑ Cheryl Denise Knott, Melissa Emery Thompson, Rebecca M. Stumpf and Matthew H. McIntyre Female reproductive strategies in orangutans, evidence for female choice and counterstrategies to infanticide in a species with frequent sexual coercion . 07 January 2010, Volume 277, Issue 1678.
  21. ↑ Michael Schmidt-Salomon : Hope human. A better world is possible. , Piper Verlag, Munich 2014, p. 94.