Editing Victim blaming (section)

==Secondary victimization of sexual and other assault victims==
{{See also|Post-assault treatment of sexual assault victims}}[[File:Marcha das Vadias.jpg|thumb|In 2011, hundreds gathered at Edmonton's [[Alberta Legislature Building|Alberta Legislature]] grounds and at [[Edmonton City Hall]] (shown here) to protest against victim blaming]]
[[Secondary victimization]] is the re-[[Psychological trauma|traumatization]] of a victim through the responses of individuals and institutions. Types of secondary victimization include victim blaming, disbelieving the victim's story, minimizing the severity of the attack, and [[medical ethics|inappropriate]] post-assault treatment by medical personnel or other organizations.<ref>{{Cite journal 
| last1 = Campbell | first1 = R. 
| last2 = Raja | first2 = S. 
| title = Secondary victimization of rape victims: insights from mental health professionals who treat survivors of violence 
| journal = Violence and Victims 
| volume = 14 
| issue = 3 
| pages = 261–275 
| year = 1999 
| pmid = 10606433
| doi = 10.1891/0886-6708.14.3.261 
| s2cid = 32496184 
}}</ref> Secondary victimization is especially common in cases of [[Drug facilitated sexual assault|drug-facilitated]], [[date rape|acquaintance]], [[military sexual trauma]] and [[statutory rape]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lorenz |first1=Katherine |last2=Kirkner |first2=Anne |last3=Ullman |first3=Sarah E. |title=A Qualitative Study Of Sexual Assault Survivors' Post-Assault Legal System Experiences |journal=Journal of Trauma & Dissociation |date=27 May 2019 |volume=20 |issue=3 |pages=263–287 |doi=10.1080/15299732.2019.1592643 |pmid=31072270 |pmc=6994185 }}</ref>{{Citation needed|date=June 2014}}

[[Sexual assault]] victims may experience stigmatization based on [[rape myth]]s. A female rape victim is especially [[Social stigma|stigmatized]] in patrilineal cultures with strong customs and taboos regarding sex and sexuality. For example, a society may view a female rape victim (especially one who was previously a [[virgin]]) as "damaged". Victims in these cultures may suffer isolation, physical and [[psychological abuse]], [[slut-shaming]], public humiliation rituals, be disowned by friends and family, be prohibited from marrying, be divorced if already married, or even be [[honour killing|killed]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://svfreenyc.org/survivors_factsheet_49.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101128162832/http://svfreenyc.org/survivors_factsheet_49.html#6 |title = Factsheets: Trauma of Victimization § Secondary injuries|archive-date = 2010-11-28|date=2001|author=National Center for Victims of Crime |website=The New York City Alliance Against Sexual Assault}}</ref> Even in many developed countries, including some sectors of United States society, [[misogyny]] remains culturally ingrained.<ref>{{Cite journal|pmid = 6767437|year = 1980|title = Power in structured misogyny: Implications for the politics of care|issue = 3|pages = 3–22|journal = Advances in Nursing Science|volume = 2|last1 = Ashley|first1 = Jo Ann|doi = 10.1097/00012272-198002030-00003}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title = Male Hegemony through Education: Construction of Gendered Identities|issue = 3|pages = 215–242|journal = Géneros. Multidisciplinary Journal of Gender Studies|volume = 1|doi = 10.4471/generos.2012.11|year = 2012|last1 = Ullah|first1 = Hazir|last2 = Ali|first2 = Johar|s2cid = 145137650|doi-access = free}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title = Beauty and Misogyny: Harmful Cultural Practices in the West|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=YlWcBQAAQBAJ|publisher = Routledge|date = 2014-12-03|isbn = 9781317675440|first = Sheila|last = Jeffreys}}</ref> A 2009 study in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence of male victims of sexual assault concludes that male rape victim blaming is usually done so because of [[social constructs]] of masculinity.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sleath |first1=Emma |last2=Bull |first2=Ray |title=Male Rape Victim and Perpetrator Blaming |journal=Journal of Interpersonal Violence |date=June 2010 |volume=25 |issue=6 |pages=969–988 |doi=10.1177/0886260509340534 |pmid=19738198 |s2cid=206561276 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/sexes/archive/2013/07/no-rape-victim-male-or-female-deserves-to-be-blamed/277598/ |title=No Rape Victim, Male or Female, Deserves to Be Blamed |last=Rine |first=Abigail |date=2013-07-08 |website=The Atlantic |language=en-US |access-date=2019-11-25 |quote=A man who fails to physically overcome his attacker is likewise seen as contributing to his own victimization; he must have secretly wanted it.}}</ref> Some effects of these kind of rape cases include a loss of masculinity, confusion about their sexual orientation, and a sense of failure in behaving as men should.<ref name=DaviesAusten2011>{{cite journal |last1=Davies |first1=Michelle |last2=Austen |first2=Kerry |last3=Rogers |first3=Paul |title=Sexual Preference, Gender, and Blame Attributions in Adolescent Sexual Assault |journal=The Journal of Social Psychology |date=September 2011 |volume=151 |issue=5 |pages=592–607 |doi=10.1080/00224545.2010.522617 |pmid=22017075 |s2cid=22077514 }}</ref> Victims of an unwanted sexual encounter usually develop psychological problems such as depression or sexual violence specific [[PTSD]] known as [[rape trauma syndrome]].<ref name=DaviesAusten2011/><ref>{{cite book |last1=Cling |first1=B. J. |title=Sexualized Violence Against Women and Children: A Psychology and Law Perspective |date=2004 |publisher=Guilford Press |isbn=978-1-59385-061-6 }}{{page needed|date=March 2021}}</ref>

One example of an allegation against female victims of sexual assault is that they were wearing [[Provocation (legal)|provocative]] clothing and thus actively trying to seduce a sexual partner. Such accusations against victims stem from the assumption that sexually revealing clothing conveys [[consent]] for sexual actions, irrespective of willful verbal [[consent]]. Research has yet to prove that attire is a significant causal factor in determining who is assaulted.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Moor|first=Avigail|title=She Dresses to Attract, He Perceives Seduction: A Gender Gap in Attribution of Intent to Women's Revealing Style of Dress and its Relation to Blaming the Victims of Sexual Violence|journal=Journal of International Women's Studies|date=2010|volume=11|issue=4|pages=115–127|url=https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol11/iss4/8/}}</ref><ref name="Beiner 2007 125–152">{{cite journal|last=Beiner|first=Theresa|title=Sexy Dressing Revisited: Does Target Dress Play a Part in Sexual Harassment Cases?|journal=[[Duke Journal of Gender Law & Policy]]| date=2007| volume=14| pages=125–152|hdl=20.500.12424/531674 }}</ref>

Victim blaming is also exemplified when a victim of sexual assault is found at fault for ''performing actions which reduce their ability to resist or refuse consent'', such as consuming alcohol.<ref name="Don't blame women's drinking for rape">{{cite web|last1=Whitaker|first1=Matthew|title=Don't blame women's drinking for rape|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/06/opinion/whitaker-women-drinking-rape/|website=CNN Opinion|date=6 November 2013 |access-date=11 September 2015}}</ref> Victim advocacy groups and medical professionals are educating young adults on the definition of consent, and the importance of refraining from victim blaming. Most institutions have adopted the concept of [[Consent#Affirmative consent|affirmative consent]] and that refraining from sexual activity while under the influence is the safest choice.<ref>{{Cite web|title = Myths and Facts About Sexual Assault and Consent|url = https://www.stsm.org/myths-and-facts-about-sexual-assault-and-consent|website = Sexual Trauma Services of the Midlands|access-date = 2015-11-16|archive-date = 17 November 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151117023726/https://www.stsm.org/myths-and-facts-about-sexual-assault-and-consent|url-status = dead}}</ref>

In efforts to discredit alleged sexual assault victims in court, a defense attorney may ''delve into an accuser's personal history'', a common practice that also has the purposeful effect of making the victim so uncomfortable they choose not to proceed. This attack on character, especially one pointing out promiscuity, makes the argument that women who lead "high risk" lifestyles (promiscuity, drug use) are not real victims of rape.<ref name="Randall 2010 397–434"/> Research on the acceptance of rape myths has shown that sexism is a significant factor in the blaming of female rape victims.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Suarez |first1=Eliana |last2=Gadalla |first2=Tahany M. |title=Stop Blaming the Victim: A Meta-Analysis on Rape Myths |journal=Journal of Interpersonal Violence |date=November 2010 |volume=25 |issue=11 |pages=2010–2035 |doi=10.1177/0886260509354503 |pmid=20065313 |s2cid=30657255 }}</ref>

===Ideal victim===
{{See also|Victimology}}
An ideal victim is one who is afforded the status of victimhood due to unavoidable circumstances that put the individual at a disadvantage. One can apply this theory to any crime including and especially sexual assault. Nils Christie, a Norwegian criminology professor, has been theorizing about the concept of the ideal victim since the 1980s. In his research he gives two examples, one of an old woman who is attacked on her way home from visiting her family and the other of a man who is attacked at a bar by someone he knew. He describes the old woman as an ideal victim because she could not avoid being in the location that she was, she did not know her attacker, and she could not fight off her attacker. The man, however, could have avoided being at a bar, knew his attacker, and should have been able to fight off his attacker, being younger and a man.<ref name="Christie 1986 17–30">{{cite book|last=Christie|first=Nils|title=The Ideal Victim|publisher=Macmillan Press|date=1986|location=London|pages=17–30|language=en}}</ref>

When applying the ideal victim theory to sexual assault victims, often judicial proceedings define an ideal victim as one who resists their attacker and exercises caution in risky situations, despite law reforms to extinguish these fallacious requirements.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gotell |first1=Lise |title=Rethinking Affirmative Consent in Canadian Sexual Assault Law: Neoliberal Sexual Subjects and Risky Women |journal=Akron Law Review |date=29 June 2015 |volume=41 |issue=4 |url=https://ideaexchange.uakron.edu/akronlawreview/vol41/iss4/3/ }}</ref> When victims are not ideal they are at risk for being blamed for their attack because they are not considered real victims of rape.

A victim who is not considered an ideal, or real victim, is one who leads a "high risk" lifestyle, partaking in drugs or alcohol, or is perceived as promiscuous. A victim who intimately knows their attacker is also not considered an ideal victim. An example of a sexual assault victim who is not ideal is a prostitute because they lead a high risk lifestyle. The perception is that these behaviors discount the credibility of a sexual assault victim's claim or that the behaviors and associations create the mistaken assumption of consent. Some of or all of the blame of the assault is then placed on these victims, and so they are not worthy of having their case presented in court. These perceptions persist in court rulings despite a shift in laws favoring affirmative consent – meaning that the participants in a sexual activity give a verbal affirmation rather than one participant who neither answers negatively nor positively. In other words, affirmative consent is yes means yes, no means no and no verbal answer also means no.<ref name="Randall 2010 397–434">{{cite journal |last1=Randall |first1=Melanie |title=Sexual Assault Law, Credibility, and 'Ideal Victims': Consent, Resistance, and Victim Blaming |journal=Canadian Journal of Women and the Law |date=October 2010 |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=397–433 |doi=10.3138/cjwl.22.2.397 |ssrn=1742077 |s2cid=143470738 }}</ref>

In addition to an ideal victim, there must be an ideal perpetrator for a crime to be considered ideal. The ideal attacker does not know their victim and is a completely non-sympathetic figure- one who is considered sub-human, an individual lacking morals. An attacker that knows their victim is not considered an ideal attacker, nor is someone who seems morally ordinary.<ref name="Christie 1986 17–30"/> Cases of intimate partner violence are not considered ideal because the victim knows their attacker. Husbands and wives are not ideal victims or perpetrators because they are intimately familiar with each other.<ref name="Randall 2010 397–434"/>