Thousands of sex crimes go unreported for reasons varying from shame to guilt and fear. But even those that do get reported are up against greater hurtles than other violent crimes. The FBI defines rape as “The carnal knowledge of a female, forcibly and against her will,” and that hasn’t changed in 83 years. To put this in perspective, a recent article in Ms. magazine noted that the last time the definition of rape was updated we were still four years away from ending prohibition, Penicillin had just been discovered, and a gallon of milk cost 14 cents. Basically, the definition of rape is older than Mickey Mouse and The Great Depression. It still excludes statutory rape, same-sex rape, forced anal or oral sex, rape with an object, rape with fingers, and male or transgender victims.
The plain, terrifying truth is that rape, second (or equal) only to murder, is not taken seriously by the one organization that has the most power to help prevent it. The FBI’s annual Uniform Crime Report is what police departments across the country use to determine funding for violent crime prevention. In 2007, when the UCR listed 91, 874 rapes, experts estimated that the true number could be as much as 24 times higher. According to The New York Times, “The New York Police Department reported 1,369 rapes [in 2010], but only 1,036—the ones that fit the federal definition—were entered in the federal figures.”
Feminist Majority Foundation President Eleanor Smeal explains, “The undercounting of rape, in comparison with other major crimes, naturally reduces the allocation of resources for sexual assault enforcement. If the common perception is a problem is much smaller than it actually is, it will result inevitably in fewer resources being allocated to it.”
The agency is planning to rewrite the definition by the end of October, thanks to pressure from organizations like the FMF. But once the definition becomes less narrow, crime rates everywhere will jump, making more police units appear unsatisfactory—a blow that worries many units. Let’s hope politics don’t get in the way of true justice.
By: Nina Boutsikaris / Photo By: Sabrina Banta
