Rape culture

In the last few years, there has been an unfortunate trend towards blaming “rape culture” 
for the extensive problem of sexual violence on campuses. While it is helpful to point out 
the systemic barriers to addressing the problem, it is important to not lose sight of a simple 
fact: Rape is caused not by cultural factors but by the conscious decisions, of a small 
percentage of the community, to commit a violent crime. 
 
While that may seem an obvious point, it has tended to get lost in recent debates. This has 
led to an inclination to focus on particular segments of the student population (e.g., 
athletes), particular aspects of campus culture (e.g., the Greek system), or traits that are 
common in many millions of law-abiding Americans (e.g., “masculinity”), rather than on the 
subpopulation at fault: those who choose to commit rape. This trend has the paradoxical 
effect of making it harder to stop sexual violence, since it removes the focus from the 
individual at fault, and seemingly mitigates personal responsibility for his or her own actions