KAVANAGH: Rape culture is #NotOkay

In response to the recent release of a video clip from 2005 in which Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump discussed women in a vulgar and derogatory manner, writer Kelly Oxford catalyzed a social media movement when she asked her Twitter followers to share their first sexual assault stories with the tag #NotOkay.

Women: tweet me your first assaults. they aren't just stats. I'll go first:

Old man on city bus grabs my "pussy" and smiles at me, I'm 12.

— kelly oxford (@kellyoxford) October 7, 2016

Women: keep tweeting me assaults with #notokay
Here was my second assault:

Boy in drama class grabbed my "pussy" during class, I was 13

— kelly oxford (@kellyoxford) October 7, 2016

The result: an outpouring of hundreds of thousands of tweets. #NotOkay became the No. 1 Twitter trend within hours, reaching 27 million tweets by Monday morning.

Considering the content of the tweets and the cause of the trend, the fact that the movement went viral almost instantly is devastating.

Forgot another one – professor at college told me i needed to "repay him" for good grade received but not (in his opinion) deserved #notokay

— Jennifer Cairn (@jennifercairn) October 8, 2016

When a "friend" reached down to help me up and "accidently" grabbed my breast inside of my dress. #notokay

— Deb Nies (@MadisonMusings) October 8, 2016

The list goes on, containing tons of stories as equally horrifying as the ones above.

What becomes abundantly clear to anyone who scrolls through the tag is that women from all over the world have experienced some form of harassment or assault in their lives, with the first incidents typically occurring at an obscenely early age. A diverse female body made up of countless different ethnicities, religions, sexualities and ages are united by one piece of common ground: rape culture.

Rape culture is defined as an environment whose prevailing social attitudes have the effect of normalizing or trivializing sexual assault and abuse. In this environment, rape and sexual violence is prevalent in the media, victim-blaming is common and harassment (or worse) is excusable. Rape culture creates an environment in which Brock Turner, who served only three months for sexually assaulting an unconscious woman behind a dumpster at a party, is referred to in the news as a “former Stanford swimmer” rather than a rapist. Rape culture creates an environment in which a presidential candidate can dismiss vulgar conversations about proudly committing sexual assault as mere locker room talk and still be considered fit to run a country. Rape culture is pervasive, rape culture is dangerous and rape culture is perpetuated daily.

Many leaders in the feminist community now advocate for the spread of “call-out culture,” which encourages individuals to call out rape culture, whether it is in the form of a derogatory joke online or sexual catcalling on the streets. By publicly holding individuals responsible for their predatory actions, systemic rape culture could, ideally, subside. #NotOkay demonstrates call-out culture in action: women are utilizing the internet as a forum to convey the message that abuse, assault and harassment are unacceptable.

Another interesting facet of the #NotOkay movement is that it clearly indicates how the internet can be a powerful mechanism of fourth-wave feminism. Fourth-wave feminism is the internet-based sector of the current feminist movement, a digital revolution of sorts. Using the web as a platform for social discussion enables people from around the world to connect their thoughts and ideas, creating an unprecedented atmosphere of intersectionality in the women’s rights movement. As previously mentioned, #NotOkay featured tweets from women across the globe, accentuating the fact that rape culture is present worldwide and, thus, united feminism is needed everywhere.

The 2016 election might prove pivotal to the trajectory of rape culture. Every citizen carries the responsibility to combat harmful stereotypes, images, jokes and media content that contribute to the normalization of sexual violence. This year, however, that responsibility needs to be carried to the voting polls. Remember, rape culture is not okay.