What does it mean to challenge rape culture?

Although this may be a repetition, it is still not a redundant conversation. It has become convenient for government and public to focus on individual risk factors for either sexual violence perpetration or victimisation. But the focus should be on the social structures that underpin the perpetration of sexual violence. 'Rape Culture' could be seen as one of the social, cultural and structural discourses and practices in which sexual violence is tolerated, accepted, eroticised, minimised and trivialised. No rape narrative can be dismissed or discounted. In a rape culture, violence against women is eroticised in literary, cinematic and media representations; victims are routinely disbelieved for their own victimisation; and perpetrators are rarely held accountable or their behaviours are seen as excusable or understandable. These manifestly sexist attitudes and beliefs about rape, rape victims and rapists do not exist in isolation but rather are part of a broader manifestation of gender inequality, prevalent in the language, laws and institutions that are supposed to criminalise, challenge and prevent sexual violence but instead perpetuate, support, condone or reflect these values. Resistance to changing or challenging this rape culture can also be found in the erroneous but deeply embedded belief that rape is an inevitable and natural fact of life. We need to bring in a 'bystander' as an approach to stopping sexual violence against women. In particular, the role of men in challenging the violent and abusive behaviours of their peers and consequently challenging cultures of 'male peer support' for rape. We have to mostly focus on educating individuals in providing support to a victim, challenging the behaviour of a perpetrator or calling the police. The bystander coming in should encourage individuals to not be passive witnesses and, by their silence, effectively condone and contribute to a culture of sexual violence against women. We must begin addressing this issue at its grass-roots level.