The group Return of Kings and its founder, Daryush Valizadeh (“Roosh V”), have been in the news a lot lately. You’ve probably heard about the worldwide meetup events that were scheduled for February 6th and then canceled due to safety concerns.
The statements by Valizadeh and the beliefs of his group are relevant to our anti-sex-trafficking work, so let’s dig into it.
The statements by Valizadeh and the beliefs of his group are relevant to our anti-sex-trafficking work, so let’s dig into it.
| First, a little background: Return of Kings (hereafter RoK) is not, sadly, a Lord of the Rings fan club. It’s a website and group that advocates for traditional gender roles, the destruction of feminism, and a return to patriarchy. RoK was founded by Daryush Valizadeh, or “Roosh V”, an American blogger, pickup artist, and advocate of “neomasculinity.” He teaches men how to get women to sleep with them by any means necessary (including intentionally lowering a woman’s self-esteem and other coercive acts). | Heads up: I will not link directly to the Return of Kings website or to any of Valizadeh’s social media sites because I don’t want to give them/him any kind of boost in views or ad revenue. I will include links to news articles instead. |
The RoK site contains articles titled “The Decline of American Women”, “How to Turn a Feminist Into Your Sex Slave", and “Women Have Reduced Themselves to Sexual Commodities.”
Recently, RoK planned a worldwide heterosexual-men-only meetup event for Saturday the 6th and experienced major backlash. The Australian Prime Minister indicated that Valizadeh would not be allowed into the country, feminists (both male and female) the world over threatened to protest the events, and petitions sprang up to prevent them or to declare RoK a hate group. The hacking group Anonymous also doxxed Valizadeh (posted his personal information publicly). The number of men who planned to attend is unknown, but Valizadeh has over 19,000 followers on twitter. Ultimately, the events were canceled because the group couldn’t guarantee the safety of the participants.
Valizadeh has also been in the news because of an article he posted last year arguing that the solution to the problem of rape is that rape should be made legal on private property. (I swear I am not making this up). His argument was that, if women knew they could legally be raped anywhere on private property, they’d be less likely to put themselves into risky situations (because obviously, he thinks victims are to blame). In the last few weeks, he has claimed that the article was satire, but in the context of everything else on his website and other things he’s said, I’m not sure I believe him.
Since I don’t want to send you to his website, here’s a list of 10 of his most notable points from International Business Times.
Recently, RoK planned a worldwide heterosexual-men-only meetup event for Saturday the 6th and experienced major backlash. The Australian Prime Minister indicated that Valizadeh would not be allowed into the country, feminists (both male and female) the world over threatened to protest the events, and petitions sprang up to prevent them or to declare RoK a hate group. The hacking group Anonymous also doxxed Valizadeh (posted his personal information publicly). The number of men who planned to attend is unknown, but Valizadeh has over 19,000 followers on twitter. Ultimately, the events were canceled because the group couldn’t guarantee the safety of the participants.
Valizadeh has also been in the news because of an article he posted last year arguing that the solution to the problem of rape is that rape should be made legal on private property. (I swear I am not making this up). His argument was that, if women knew they could legally be raped anywhere on private property, they’d be less likely to put themselves into risky situations (because obviously, he thinks victims are to blame). In the last few weeks, he has claimed that the article was satire, but in the context of everything else on his website and other things he’s said, I’m not sure I believe him.
Since I don’t want to send you to his website, here’s a list of 10 of his most notable points from International Business Times.
So today we’re talking about rape culture and how it connects with sex trafficking.
Let me define that so we’re all on the same page. By “rape culture”, I mean the enabling of rapists and normalizing of violent non-consensual sexual acts. Rape culture is evident when victims are blamed for being raped (e.g. “asking for it”), or when women are told to change their behavior or clothing to keep from getting raped. It’s evident when the actions of rapists are trivialized (“boys will be boys”), when men are encouraged to use coercive behavior or applauded for doing so, when the notion of consent is belittled, or when sexual harassment is tolerated.
By “rape culture”, I mean the enabling of rapists and normalizing of violent non-consensual sexual acts. | There are those (including RoK) who claim that the idea of rape culture is a creation of militant feminists in order to blame men for any sexual act a woman regrets afterward. (Click if you dare: the user-submitted definitions on Urban Dictionary are an example of this denial.) But we live in a country where rape is rampant on college campuses. We live in a country where rape happens every 2 minutes, and where 98% of rapists will never spend a day in jail. (Source.) |
The very existence of RoK proves that rape culture is real. This type of misogyny is pervasive and harmful, and we should continue to address that as a society.
By the way, it’s a disservice to men as well.
Telling women they have to dress conservatively in order to avoid getting raped assumes that men just can’t help themselves, that they are simply incapable of refraining from raping a woman they find attractive. That’s not the case. Men have self-control, and they can - and should be expected to - use it.
Rape culture contributes to the problem of sex trafficking, both on the supply side and on the demand side.
Why do you think buyers buy? Control. Buying ensures that you cannot be rejected. It takes away a person’s ability to say no. In sex trafficking, the person being sold is being forced into it, and so her/his ability to say yes or to say no has been completely taken away. Let’s call that what it is: rape. And if the person being forcibly sold for sex is underage, like the survivors we serve at Courtney’s House? That’s rape.
Why do you think pimps sell people for sex? They know buyers will buy. They know they’ll always be able to make a profit. In this culture, in which everything is over-sexualized, in which there is such pressure on men to have sex in order to prove their masculinity, there will always be someone looking to buy. I guarantee you, if no one was buying from them, pimps wouldn’t be selling.
By the way, it’s a disservice to men as well.
Telling women they have to dress conservatively in order to avoid getting raped assumes that men just can’t help themselves, that they are simply incapable of refraining from raping a woman they find attractive. That’s not the case. Men have self-control, and they can - and should be expected to - use it.
Rape culture contributes to the problem of sex trafficking, both on the supply side and on the demand side.
Why do you think buyers buy? Control. Buying ensures that you cannot be rejected. It takes away a person’s ability to say no. In sex trafficking, the person being sold is being forced into it, and so her/his ability to say yes or to say no has been completely taken away. Let’s call that what it is: rape. And if the person being forcibly sold for sex is underage, like the survivors we serve at Courtney’s House? That’s rape.
Why do you think pimps sell people for sex? They know buyers will buy. They know they’ll always be able to make a profit. In this culture, in which everything is over-sexualized, in which there is such pressure on men to have sex in order to prove their masculinity, there will always be someone looking to buy. I guarantee you, if no one was buying from them, pimps wouldn’t be selling.
| And vice versa. The very availability of sex for purchase also contributes to the perpetuation of rape culture. Since it’s possible to buy sex in every city with a quick Google search, what does that say about our society’s idea of consent? What does that teach our young men about how to treat women?* | When men join groups like RoK that are geared toward demeaning and exploiting women, and when men lend their support to vocal advocates of misogyny and rape, it teaches more men that women are worthless. |
When pimps sing and rap about how cool it is to be a pimp, it teaches young listeners that demeaning women is not just acceptable, but cool. When older men brag about experiences with buying sex from teenage girls, it teaches younger listeners that exploitation is normal and fun.
When men join groups like RoK that are geared toward demeaning and exploiting women, and when men lend their support to vocal advocates of misogyny and rape, it teaches more men that women are worthless.
It’s a vicious circle.
When men join groups like RoK that are geared toward demeaning and exploiting women, and when men lend their support to vocal advocates of misogyny and rape, it teaches more men that women are worthless.
It’s a vicious circle.
Well that's uplifting. What can I do about it?
| See it for what it is. Pay attention to the words and images and actions that perpetuate rape culture. Think critically about how they shape attitudes toward women and the experiences of women just trying to make their way in the world without being assaulted. Talk about it. Call people out when they make jokes about rape. Point out to friends when you see rape culture being perpetuated, or where consent isn’t being respected. Teach your teenagers how to treat others with respect. Watch out for stereotypes, and always think critically. | PSA: If you’ve been sexually assaulted, know someone who has, or are interested in volunteering, reach out to your local Rape Crisis Center. (Look it up here.) If you’re here in DC with us, get in touch with our friends at the DCRCC. |
Check out Safe Harbor laws in your state. Are underage people in your area being charged with prostitution? Are your local law enforcement officers receiving training on recognizing sex trafficking and treating survivors appropriately? If not, contact your representatives and start that conversation! We can help provide that training and advocate for policy changes. (Contact us)
Rape culture isn’t going to disappear overnight, and neither is sex trafficking, unfortunately. But seeing it for what it is, talking about it, and advocating for change will continue to chip away at it. As more and more people are educated, as frank conversations are had and mistaken impressions are corrected, things will change. They’ve got to.
Rachel Boyce
Director of Operations
Rape culture isn’t going to disappear overnight, and neither is sex trafficking, unfortunately. But seeing it for what it is, talking about it, and advocating for change will continue to chip away at it. As more and more people are educated, as frank conversations are had and mistaken impressions are corrected, things will change. They’ve got to.
Rachel Boyce
Director of Operations
*And don’t even get me started on how rape culture and sex trafficking impact the LGBT community. That’s another blog for another day.
RSS Feed
