Would Someone Please Tell Todd Akin Rape is Rape?

August 21st, 2012 - By Stephanie Guerilus

Source: abcnewradaronline.com

Rape is rape. That should be the end of discussion but in the minds of some, there are distinctions to be made specifically when the rape victim has to answer the question of whether or not to terminate a pregnancy. When it comes to this issue, I beg to differ with Republicans, specifically Todd Akin.

Rep. Todd Akin, who, as I’m writing this post, is running to be the U.S. senator from the state of Missouri. The pro life Republican declared that he was against abortions even in the case of “legitimate rape.” The New York Times reported his comments from this past weekend:

Asked in an interview on a St. Louis television station about his views on abortion, Mr. Akin, a six-term member of Congress who is backed by Tea Party conservatives, made it clear that his opposition to the practice was nearly absolute, even in instances of rape.

“It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that’s really rare,” Mr. Akin said of pregnancies from rape. “If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let’s assume that maybe that didn’t work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child.”

There were so many whiplashes incurred over that statement because it really leaves one’s head spinning. Akin placed such a great importance on the hypothetical life of the unborn child that he just insinuated that if a woman got pregnant, then she really wasn’t raped. He truly defied common sense and the most basic working knowledge of Sex Ed with his comments.

Akin must be from the school of thought that science should be taken out of education because his junk logic has already been debunked by doctors and the human body. If an egg and sperm collide, a woman becomes pregnant and that doesn’t become a casualty of a GOP talking point when they make their arguments against rape.  Statistics have also shown that and as Politico reported  “Rape-related pregnancy occurs with significant frequency.” Authors of a 1990s study concluded that one out of every 20 rapes results in pregnancy, for a total of more than 32,000 rape-pregnancies each year in the United States. A separate 2003 article in the journal Human Nature estimated that rapes are twice as likely to result in pregnancies as consensual sex.”

In his efforts to clean up his remarks, Akin stood still on the quicksand of his rationale by explaining that he only meant to refer to “forcible rape” and even invoked 9/11. His insistence on continuing to be a foot soldier in the GOP’s war against women and their desire to redefine rape, even in the face of his own fellow Republicans turning against him, is further proof that he is catering to the whims of ideology rather than just admitting you are an outlier to actual facts and simple compassion for those who have suffered violations against their bodies.

It’s not just that Akin and his ilk are missing sensitivity chips. The root issue is not only their defiance of biology but denying women the courtesy of being capable of making informed decisions about their own bodies. The sheer willful arrogance and ignorance that Akin and other individuals like him hold are being codified into law. These lawmakers are diminishing the impact of sexual assaults on the altar of proving who can care most about “life.” But as soon as the umbilical cord is cut, programs deemed to help unwed mothers are demonized as systematic socialism, proving that all this talk about being “pro-life” is just that. But I digress.

This country isn’t that far removed from a time when marital rape was not considered a crime because women were viewed as belonging to their husbands and sex on command was enshrined in the vows before God. There are people who still believe that rape only occurs when force is involved. It’s even more common for some to operate under the mindset that men can’t be victims of rape which is not true. It’s a false misnomer which has been rectified and recognized for the crime that it is, but we cannot afford to take leaps backwards in progress.

Akin and those who advocate on the behalf of “legitimate rape” and “forcible rape” aren’t making gaffes or misspeaking. These are convictions they hold dear to their core and only play innocent when the world reminds them that it’s 2012. It’s the 21st century and women don’t just exist to breed like farm animals, take abuse silently or simply remain seen as our traumatic experiences are reduced to incendiary sound bites. They’re not sorry for trying to dilute the meaning of rape and should be held accountable.

Thankfully, there are still people of conscience, decency and a grasp of high school science that rightfully condemn making excuses, apologies or creating subcategories for rape. It’s rape. There are no two sides. It shouldn’t be up for debate. One does not need to phone a friend for the right answer. It’s wrong.

President Obama made it plain to the simple minded when he declared that rape is rape and there shouldn’t be any in between. Women shouldn’t be victimized twice by being placed into categories of “legitimate.” To be violated in a manner not of your choosing shouldn’t leave anyone searching the dictionary for qualifiers to put in front of the word rape. It is strong enough all on its own.

Stephanie Guerilus is a multimedia journalist and author. Follow her @qsteph

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  • ttyme7

    I am convinced that not only is Todd Atkin an insensitive jerk. But, he also has the intellect of a squash. I am dumbfounded by the support that he receives in Missouri. Missourians, I am sorry, but this doesn’t bode well for your intelligence either. To make a statement defining the type of rape (i.e. legimate rape) is mind boggling. And, then to further insinuate that abortionist perform abortions on women who are not even pregnant. Republicans if this is all you have to offer the people of Missouri, then the Republican party is pathetic. Stick to the real issues!

  • BlueCornmoon

    Bottom line is this: RICH PEOPLE HAVE ALL THE CHOICES ALL THE TIME while making laws denying them to others. When I was in college right before Roe v Wade, RICH WHITE GIRLS, who got preg on spring break, FLEW OUT OF COUNTRY over weekend to have abortions. It was a fairly common thing to do that.They were back in class on Monday. A middle class white girl in one of my classes, suddenly vanished 2nd semester. Folks said she was very ill. The next year a close pal of hers said she’d had an illegal backalley abortion that almost killed her & probably left her sterile. She was on birth control & engaged to her boyfriend but she got preg anyway. They later married.This is what the GOP intends. You can bet if ANY of those prolifers had a female family member get raped & preg,they’d take care of it in secret & go on with their agenda. They would NOT trot the woman or girl out in public as a poster girl for pro life & expose her to the ignorant ravings of men like Akins. She’d be protected & get all the help she needed. IN SECRET.WITH A CHOICE.

  • BlueCornmoon

    I’m glad you have a good life. One of the reasons I’d never bear a rape child or keep it is what on earth would you tell the child when he/she asked about “daddy”. I would NOT want the kid to ever hear or know such a thing.If I were a kid I would not want to know. Reminds me of an African proverb: “All truth is good,but not all truth is good to say”

  • Anon

    What he said sounds stupid but in actuality there is a difference between statuatory rape and forcible rape….. White folks don’t like that their slowly losing their “majority” status and want to outlaw rape so that young white teens will be forced to keep unwanted babies BUT they fail to realize minorities combined have more abortions than white folks. Either way I’m pro choice so I think everything he has to say on the issue of abortion is nonsense BUT I think people are misunderstanding what he was saying. He even cosponored a bill with language stating his support of outlawing all abortions except in the case of forcible rape and theres a federal definition of what forcible rape is so…. whatevs.

    • BlueCornmoon

      I’ve even heard that they want to fix it so more white babies are born because nowdays, due to birth control & legal abortions white couples who want white babies find out they’re few & far between. So a lot are adopting overseas babies from Russia,China,South America, & black kids. Those are the most open minded whites to whom a child is a child who needs a home & they have one to give.

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  • Jolene

    Somebody tell me he has an IQ of 10. I would love to see his a** get burned by rape victims.

  • FromUR2UB

    It sounds like Akin has been consulting with Dr. Quack W.D. (Witch Doctor). I’ve never in my life heard that a woman’s body can be selective in which circumstances causes impregnation. But, aside from how absurd that theory sounds, that party is so incredibly MEAN! If ever I had a child born of rape or incest, I know I wouldn’t want it. There’s a chance the baby would be the spitting image of the daddy, and because of that, compounded with the circumstances causing its birth, I’m not confident I could be a good mother to it. Why subject a child to that kind of hostility from its own mother? Sure, the baby can be put up for adoption; but aren’t there already more children who need homes than people who can or will or accommodate them? Then there would be that whole drama waiting to unfold, with the kid either looking for me someday, or learning that he/she was conceived from an act of violence. I guess this is the type of legislation someone proposes when he feels those possibilities could never touch his life. Maybe Akin believes that women who get raped had it coming, and therefore, should have to deal with any consequence. There’s certainly no compassion there.

  • Ellen

    I think I know the studies Akin was referencing. Every woman knows that stress can derail your period / delay ovulation. A series of articles argued that, assuming ovulation hadn’t already occurred, the stress / crisis of an aggravated rape would be enough to halt ovulation, preventing pregnancy from occurring. (If and only if the rape occurred before the woman had ALREADY ovulated). Of course, this ignores “date-rape” and stranger rape scenarios involving drugging. It ignores that GHB, Rhohypnal/ Scopolomine, alcohol, etc. have a depressive effect and prevent the “stress” process from activating. Akin didn’t read the articles carefully, obviously. There are so many different rape scenarios and variables that encompass “real” rape that are unaccounted for by Akin’s theory. The President is right. “Rape is rape”

    • Candacey Doris

      It’s not just articles, he claims that doctors TOLD him that the trauma
      of rape prevents pregnancy unless the woman was lying about it being
      rape. The fact that it takes months for stress to affect your boy in
      that way id not make its way into his head.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1123696538 Delwyn Campbell

    “Hypothetical life of the unborn child”? Just like Akins, perhaps you need to go back to school. Once the egg is fertilized, it is alive, not hypothetically alive, ALIVE! If you want to terminate the pregnancy, that is a decision that, whether the courts make it legal or not, you will have to live with. At least be honest about things, though, and quit playing semantics. When you have an abortion, you are killing a human being, whatever the reasons you may have for doing so, just like when you euthanize an old or chronically ill person, or you execute a convicted murderer, you are killing a human being. The only question remains, is what you are doing justified, or not?

    • A Person

      You’re a disgusting piece of sh!t. Eat sh!t and die!

  • Gimmeabreak78

    Thanks, todd Akin, for explaining to me the intricacy of my reproductive system. I had no idea that my uterus had a special pregnancy force field to protect me from getting knocked up by a rapist. Yay, magic uterus!

  • Candacey Doris

    What’s even scarier is that this man is on the House’s science committee. That means he gets a say in which projects get funding. Low U.S science scores? Look at the reason for it.

  • http://twitter.com/girlwonder614 cute_n_ creepy™♥

    It has to be hard to try to be happy about a pregnancy that was the result of such a violent, hateful, humiliating, painful, mind warping, life altering, heinous act, like RAPE. If I were ever in that type of situation, I’d most assuredly would want an abortion, and if I couldn’t get one, I’d do it MYSELF..

  • sabrina

    This hurts me because just sitting here thinking about having a child by a rapist makes me want to do a whole bunch of awful things. Simply keeping that child alive doesn’t mean anything because he’ll probably end up having an awful life, and it won’t even be his fault!

    I’m just mad that men are taking it upon themselves to make (bad) decisions FOR A WOMAN’S ISSUE!!!! Ugh!

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Tanya-Johnson/100001569852933 Tanya Johnson

    You know, we can all be angry with the remarks Atkins made, but hopefully his remarks can wake up the rest of society, and the criminal Justice system as to what rape is. The truth of the matter is this man openly and ignorantly made a comment that is based on majority of societies views. which means he idnt know he was speaking out of context. Furthermore, If a person ( woman, man or child) is raped, there are usually a million defenses on behalf of the rapist as to why her or she should not pay for their crime, and the rape victim is left with the pain of the incident. Bottom Line rape is rape !!
    Therefore, we as a society need to be conscious of whether or not we think just like Atkin’s before we judge him..FYi, I am an African American female and have been a victim of rape.

    • FromUR2UB

      He must have examined male cases of rape and concluded that the body shuts down and rejects pregnancy.

  • Elle

    Apparently this isn’t the first time that Akin has made these comments. I read an article that looked back on his comments in the past. He has said before that since a women’s body can’t get “excited” during a rape that her body should shut down and that way she couldn’t get pregnant. He is a piece of work and his comments are the most asinine thing I have ever heard. It’s scary that there are people like him in Congress.

    • Erin

      Wow that lacks all sense, nothing logical about that comment. Your so right it is scary but whats even more alarming is that “we” as in the citizens voted for him to be in office.

    • maggie

      If he is talking about a woman becoming lubricated during arousal then he is wrong. Physiologic events such as vaginal secretion can occur in the act of sex regardless of the women’s libido being involved. Sex is at the core of humanity/procreation and those physiological mechanisms work very well. As far as the article, loved it.

    • Anon

      While I agree this guy is an idiot, I’m assuming he thinks a woman’s body has natural defenses to stop pregnancy when sex is unwanted. Just like when people are badly injured but adrenoline kicks in and they somehow have extraordinary strength like lifting cars off of people… I think thats his line of reasoning but even still theres not medical reports or studies to prove what he’s saying so he’s just dumb.

      • BlueCornmoon

        According to his line or reasoning, there should never be an unwanted pregnancy because a woman’s body would shut down from the trauma.OK that means if a single,married,engaged, or shacked up woman wants to avoid an unplanned pregnancy, all she has to do is get stressed out to the max about the prospect & her body will shut the whole thing down. Ridiculous !