Study Reports 'Nearly One In Five Young Women Have Experienced Forced Intercourse'--Is It Accurate?

Feminists have a bad habit of conflating voluntary sexual relations with rape, and here we go again. The Family Violence Prevention Fund's new youth rape study claims that "Nearly One in Five Young Women Have Experienced Forced Intercourse."

Sounds terrible, right? Except that much of what they call "forced intercourse" (i.e. rape) is not forced. According to Child Trends, who conducted the study for the FVPF, the "Types of Force Used" include:

1) "verbal pressure"

2) "being given alcohol or drugs"

3) "being told the relationship would end as a means of forcing intercourse."

I certainly don't believe that verbally pressuring a woman to have sex, giving her alcohol to loosen her up, or threatening to break up with her if she doesn't have sex with you are admirable behaviors, but they're a long, long way from rape.

The FVPF study also recorded genuine rape/violence, and I've no doubt that youth sexual violence is a legitimate problem. However, feminists exaggerate the problem and vilify and stigmatize young men.

The full study, which was conducted by Emily Holcombe, B.A., Jennifer Manlove, Ph.D., and Erum Ikramullah, B.A./B.S. and released last month, can be found here. The FVPF's press release can be seen here.

The FVPF is one of America's most prominent domestic violence organizations, and was instrumental in creating Violence Against Women Act in 1994. To learn more about VAWA, see my recent co-authored colum
Biden Selection is Bad News for America's Fathers (San Jose Mercury-News, 9/2/08).

Thanks to Tim, a reader, for sending me the original press release.