Chanel Contos just asked sexual assault survivors what their alleged rapists are doing now, and, alarmingly, not one could say that their abuser was in jail or paying for their crime.
In an Instagram carousel last night, Contos shared where hundreds of sexual assault survivors said their abusers have ended up in life since they raped them.
Shockingly, several claimed that their alleged rapists were still in the same career that they were in when they sexually assaulted them. These careers included working in the army, at a bank, and as a doctor and a lawyer, and often in senior positions. A survivor also claimed that their alleged abuser was “winning medals at the Olympics”.
“He was an Uber driver and I still check his profile to see if he’s still driving, he is,” said another.
A different survivor explained how easily these perpetrators can carry on with their lives when their victims are left paralysed by the trauma of being raped: “He is in a long-term relationship. I still haven’t had sex since the rape.”
It’s all very scathing stuff. And, not only does it all prove how systematic rape culture is and how ‘normal’ people can be perpetrators too, but it also shows how often these perpetrators continue to thrive in the same careers where they’ve used their surroundings to perpetrate in the first place.
As Contos explained in the post: “what this shows us is that we live in a society where rapists are not held accountable for their actions.
“Our society is structured so people who exhibit the same personality traits of opportunistic rapists are rewarded in their careers for things like their ‘determination’, ‘ambition’ and ‘confidence’.
“To change the rape culture that we live in where rapists are allowed to live consequence-free, we must accept that ‘normal’ people are capable of sexual assault. Just because someone is a doctor, teacher, politician, or sports star, it doesn’t mean they’re incapable of rape. You know a survivor of sexual assault and you know a perpetrator of sexual assault. Act accordingly.”
Back in June, Chanel Contos revealed how many of the anonymous reports of sexual assault she had heard were perpetrated by private schoolboys. Her work has led to the Queensland Government introducing an explicit consent education program for students as young as ten years old. You can learn more about her campaign to teach proper consent education in Australian schools here.
Help is available. If you require immediate assistance, please call 000.
If you’d like to speak to someone about sexual violence, please call the 1800 Respect hotline on 1800 737 732 or chat online.
Under 25? You can reach Kids Helpline at 1800 55 1800 or chat online.
