Rasp
Senior Editor
Radical feminists, try a new view
Radical feminists, try a new view
By Cameron Schneider
You’ve all heard the statistic: one out of every four women will be raped in her lifetime.
I’ve always had some doubts about this so-called “fact,"� so I did a little research. Turns out, the statistic is wrong. In fact, according to a United Nations global crime report, there were 95,000 reported rapes in the United States in 2002.
I’m not sure how to manipulate the numbers to make a “one in four"� statistic, but according to my math, 95,000 cases of rape out of a female population of about 150 million in the United States is less than 1 percent.
Even if you consider that 60 percent of rape cases go unreported and that 50 percent of rape c
harges are later reported to be false accusations by the accuser, the number is still less than 1 percent. The figure gets even smaller if you consider the numbers on a global scale.
This statistic, which comes from the American Association of University Women, is wildly off the mark. This distortion of the facts is the difference between 95,000 rapes and 37.5 million rapes in the U.S. alone. How could this happen?
In essence, several radical women’s advocacy groups represent the extremist side of the feminist movement. They’re loud, they’re vocal and they’ve acquired the public’s attention through startling and often falsified reports.
As an example, “radical"� feminists Gloria Steinem and Naomi Wolf once (separately) made claims that 150,000 American women die from anorexia each year, citing the American Anorexia and Bulimia Association.
However, when this claim was investigated, the president of the AABA said that these figures were wrong. In fact, according to AABA
studies, about 60 to 100 women die every year due to anorexia. No harm done, right? I wish.
These false numbers and many more have permeated society and are now accepted as fact. They appear in public ads and college textbooks. If you point out that these numbers aren’t accurate, radical feminists are quick to declare you sexist with an anti-feminist agenda.
I’m not saying it’s bad to be a feminist. In fact, I encourage it. I’d consider myself a feminist and a masculinist; I support equality for both sexes. Neither sex should have an advantage over the other.
However, I am firmly convinced that radical feminists are detrimental to society. Extremist factions within the feminist movement are male-bashers who make women out to be helpless victims.
They deceive women and men alike to portray a deeply sexist society that doesn’t exist. They alienate men and women alike. Years ago, men and women could be proud to call themselves feminists.
Today, because of these deceitful, radical feminists, many men and women who would otherwise support the feminist cause shy away in fear of being associated with a cause full of such hatred and resentment.
Modern feminism needs a revival. Women are not helpless victims; they are strong, independent and just as capable as any man.
Radical feminists, try a new view
By Cameron Schneider
You’ve all heard the statistic: one out of every four women will be raped in her lifetime.
I’ve always had some doubts about this so-called “fact,"� so I did a little research. Turns out, the statistic is wrong. In fact, according to a United Nations global crime report, there were 95,000 reported rapes in the United States in 2002.
I’m not sure how to manipulate the numbers to make a “one in four"� statistic, but according to my math, 95,000 cases of rape out of a female population of about 150 million in the United States is less than 1 percent.
Even if you consider that 60 percent of rape cases go unreported and that 50 percent of rape c
harges are later reported to be false accusations by the accuser, the number is still less than 1 percent. The figure gets even smaller if you consider the numbers on a global scale.
This statistic, which comes from the American Association of University Women, is wildly off the mark. This distortion of the facts is the difference between 95,000 rapes and 37.5 million rapes in the U.S. alone. How could this happen?
In essence, several radical women’s advocacy groups represent the extremist side of the feminist movement. They’re loud, they’re vocal and they’ve acquired the public’s attention through startling and often falsified reports.
As an example, “radical"� feminists Gloria Steinem and Naomi Wolf once (separately) made claims that 150,000 American women die from anorexia each year, citing the American Anorexia and Bulimia Association.
However, when this claim was investigated, the president of the AABA said that these figures were wrong. In fact, according to AABA
studies, about 60 to 100 women die every year due to anorexia. No harm done, right? I wish.
These false numbers and many more have permeated society and are now accepted as fact. They appear in public ads and college textbooks. If you point out that these numbers aren’t accurate, radical feminists are quick to declare you sexist with an anti-feminist agenda.
I’m not saying it’s bad to be a feminist. In fact, I encourage it. I’d consider myself a feminist and a masculinist; I support equality for both sexes. Neither sex should have an advantage over the other.
However, I am firmly convinced that radical feminists are detrimental to society. Extremist factions within the feminist movement are male-bashers who make women out to be helpless victims.
They deceive women and men alike to portray a deeply sexist society that doesn’t exist. They alienate men and women alike. Years ago, men and women could be proud to call themselves feminists.
Today, because of these deceitful, radical feminists, many men and women who would otherwise support the feminist cause shy away in fear of being associated with a cause full of such hatred and resentment.
Modern feminism needs a revival. Women are not helpless victims; they are strong, independent and just as capable as any man.