Why can’t we say “rape”?
Another gender socialization flop in the media. Are we surprised? Yes Means Yes reported on a man’s r-a-p-e in Brooklyn, New York. Michael Mineo alleges that he was sodomized raped back in October of 2008. According to The New York Times:
On Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2010, a criminal trial began at the State Supreme Court in Brooklyn against three officers charged in the case. Prosecutors said that one of the officers, Richard Kern, repeatedly shoved a retractable baton between Mr. Mineo’s buttocks, then told Mr. Mineo that if he revealed the attack to anyone or went to the hospital, he would be charged with a felony. Two other officers, Alex Cruz and Andrew Morales, helped to cover up the attack, prosecutors charged.
So what is the officer being charged with? The crime of sodomy. Not rape. He (allegedly) “repeatedly shoved a retractable baton between Mr. Mineo’s buttocks“. That sounds like rape to me. However, the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report (UCR) and National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) classify rape as: “the carnal knowledge of a female against her will” (by a male). Same-sex rape, or the rape of a male by a female are classified as “sexual assault”.
