Constructing hierarchies of victimhood: Queer male survivors' evaluations of sexual assault survivors

The author employs a critical sexualities approach and draws on feminist theories of sexual assault to examine queer male survivors’ constructions of hierarchies of victimhood. Results, based on in-depth interviews conducted with 60 queer male survivors, reveal that participants most commonly responded to questions concerning hierarchies of victimhood by arguing that sexual assault is taken more seriously when it happens to women than to men. The second most common response involved participants constructing other queer male survivors as blameworthy, invoking a stereotype of a feminized queer man seeking consensual sex. In light of these findings, the author argues for greater attention toward building solidarity among survivors across the lines of gender and sexuality and for further feminist, sex critical interventions that challenge the pathologizing of male femininity and consensual sex.

Health associations for male survivors of unwanted and non-consensual sex

Literature has established that men with non-consensual sexual experiences exhibit a higher likelihood of engaging in high-risk sexual behaviors; however, previous research does not explore men with unwanted sexual experiences, nor their sexual and general health outcomes. Weighted data from the 2011–2017 National Survey of Family Growth included men aged 18–49 years who ever experienced oral, vaginal, or anal sex by partners of any gender ( N = 10,763). The Pearson χ2 test compared the sociodemographic of men with or without a history of unwanted or non-consensual sex. Logistic regressions were used to examine the association of this history to sexual health and general health outcomes, while controlling for age, race/ethnicity, and education level. Approximately 1 in 10 (10.3%) American men reported experiencing unwanted or non-consensual sex in their lifetime. Men with these experiences were more likely to rate their health as fair or poor (a OR = 1.5, 95% CI = [1.1, 2.0]) and have difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions due to a physical, mental, or emotional condition (a OR = 2.1, 95% CI = [1.7, 2.7]). Men with forced sex experiences reported higher odds of gonorrhea (a OR = 5.4; 95% CI = [3.0, 10.0]) or chlamydia diagnoses (a OR = 2.5; 95% CI = [1.5, 4.4]) in the past year, and a diagnosis of genital herpes (a OR = 2.7; 95% CI = [1.6, 4.6]), genital warts (a OR = 1.7; 95% CI = [1.0, 5.6]), and syphilis (a OR = 2.4; 95% CI = [1.0, 5.6]) in their lifetime than men who did not report these experiences. The association of sexually transmitted infections and general health outcomes to unwanted and non-consensual sex validates the demand for clinicians to integrate trauma-informed care into their practice with male patients.

“If I Don’t Allow Him to Have Sex With Me, Our Relationship Will Be Broken”: Rape, Sexual Coercion, and Sexual Compliance Within Marriage in Rural Cambodia

Rape, sexual coercion, and sexual compliance within marriage are major components of gender-based violence globally. This article examines a range of non-consensual sexual experiences within heterosexual marriage in Aoral and Thpong districts in Kampong Speu, Cambodia. Interviews were conducted with 11 married women and thematically analyzed from a critical realist and feminist perspective. Four categories of non-consensual sex were identified and analyzed (rape/forced sex, sexual coercion, sexual compliance, and internalized pressure). These are discussed in detail, alongside the need for educational efforts that disrupt traditional gender norms that create a context conducive to women’s non-consensual sex in Cambodia.

The Legal, Practical and Policy Dilemmas in Enforcing the Sexual Offences Act of Kenya in Relation to Consensual Adolescent Sex

This article analyses the dilemmas encountered in enforcing the Kenyan law on defilement, focusing specifically on consensual sex between adolescents. It argues that, although punishing adults who have sex with minors is clearly justified, punishment cannot be justified in the case of minors who engage in “experimental” sex with each other. It challenges the current legal regime that allows only one minor (male) to be charged, and not the other (female), noting that neither of the mutual participants would feel vindicated by punishing the other. Similarly, it shows that charging both participants also poses legal and policy challenges. Consequently, it argues that charging adolescents for defilement when they have consensual sex with each other goes against the very policy that informed the adoption of the anti-defilement provisions. The article recommends that Kenya's legislation is reformed to create a legal regime that protects juveniles from sexual violation without victimizing them.

Editorial: Understanding Exploitation in Consensual Sex Work to Inform Occupational Health & Safety Regulation: Current Issues and Policy Implications

The impetus behind this Special Issue emerged from a quest to move beyond binary thinking in the contemporary period about people who sell sexual services, including recent disputes about “sex trafficking vs [...]

Conclusions

This concluding chapter summarizes the Evidential Account that is comprised of the Interpersonal Justification Argument, the Expression of Will View, and the Due Diligence Principle. After elaborating how the account applies, this chapter surveys remaining doubts that we may have about this account. Doubts are inevitable because there is a tension between two attractive thoughts. On the one hand, there is a pull to thinking that a consent-giver should be able to control the scope of their consent. On the other hand, there is a pull to thinking that the consent-receiver should have epistemic access to the scope of the consent. Since the consent-giver may fail to control the epistemic access of the consent-receiver, these thoughts cannot be fully reconciled, and so any account will miss out on something attractive. After discussing how the Evidential Account responds to this tension, this book ends by revisiting the topic of sexual deception. The Evidential Account entails an expansive view of sexual misconduct in so far as the account implies that many sexual deceivers engage in non-consensual sex with their victims.

Sexualization of Sharīʿa: Application of Islamic Criminal (Ḥudūd) Laws in Pakistan)

In 1979, General Zia ul-Haq promulgated the Hudood Ordinances to provide Islamic punishments for several offenses, but the prosecution for extra-marital sex (zinā) has been disproportionately higher. Based on the analysis of reported judgments, I argue that the higher rate of prosecutions for zinā was a direct result of new laws. Despite carrying the name “Hudood”, these Ordinances specified several taʿzīr offenses with the objective of ensuring prosecutions. By incorporating ḥadd and taʿzīr offenses for zinā, the Zina Ordinance blurred the distinction between consensual sex and rape, and thus exposed victim women, who reported rape, to prosecution for consensual sex. The Qazf Ordinance, which might have curbed the filing of false accusations of zinā, encouraged them by providing the complainants the defense of good faith. The number of zinā cases has decreased after the reform of the Zina Ordinance and the Qazf Ordinance under the Protection of Women Act, 2006.

Sexual consent and chemsex: a quantitative study on sexualised drug use and non-consensual sex among men who have sex with men in Amsterdam, the Netherlands

BackgroundChemsex (drug use to enhance sex) has emerged among men who have sex with men (MSM). Non-consensual sex (NCS) is hypothesised to occur frequently under the influence of chemsex, however data are scarce. In this cross-sectional study, it was aimed to assess whether NCS is associated with chemsex.MethodsWe offered a survey about chemsex in the past 6 months (crystal methamphetamine, mephedrone and/or gamma-hydroxybutyrate/gamma-butyrolacton use) and NCS (sexual experiences beyond one’s limits or unpleasant sexual experiences) in the past 5 years to Amsterdam-located gay dating platform users. Associations were assessed using χ² test, Fisher’s exact test and multivariable logistic regression.ResultsOf 891 participants, 30.6% (273 of 891) engaged in chemsex; 21.2% engaging and 16.7% not engaging in chemsex reported any NCS experiences (p=0.109).Among MSM who reported any NCS experiences, chemsex engagers reported being touched against one’s will less often compared with non-engagers (22.4% vs 39.8%; p=0.036). Yet, chemsex engagers reported passing out and not remembering what happened during drug use more often (41.4% vs 8.7%; p<0.001). The level of suffering from NCS experiences did not differ between chemsex engagers and non-engagers (p=0.539); and was rated by most participants with no suffering at all or low suffering (77.1%). In the multivariable regression analyses, chemsex engagement in the past 6 months was associated with NCS (adjusted OR 1.46; 95% CI 1.01 to 2.11).ConclusionsA substantial proportion of MSM (regardless of chemsex engagement) reported NCS in the past 5 years. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, chemsex engagement was associated with an NCS experience. Among participants who reported NCS, suffering related to NCS however, did not differ between chemsex engagers and non-engagers. Sexual healthcare professionals need to address chemsex and NCS during consultations involving MSM and refer men for specialised help if deemed necessary.