Sex, Power, and Violence on the College Campus

Abstract

This dissertation addresses the problem of rape on campus in the United States. It takes seriously the data offered by the social sciences which demonstrate not only that approximately twenty percent of college women will experience a completed or attempted rape, but also that rape is, itself, on a “continuum of violence” that marks women’s lives. In addition to rape, women also face harassment, visual abuse, and stalking. All are components of rape culture. Rape culture is also comprised of the social norms and expectations regarding gender and sexuality that constitute women according to desirability, defined by their ability to be treated as sexual objects. This culture simultaneously undergirds and veils the violent manifestations of rape. As such, it requires moral analysis. The dissertation proceeds in four chapters. The first chapter outlines the contours of the reality of campus sexuality, gender, and sexual violence with the help of the social sciences. Drawing on the social sciences, it argues that the cultural context that supports campus rape must be addressed in order to adequately work against campus rape. The second chapter draws on feminist approaches to sexual violence in order to argue that the reality of campus rape requires an interrogation of socially expected heterosexuality. Here, heterosexuality is structured around dominance and submission in order to construct gendered identities of masculinity and femininity, respectively. In the third chapter, this dissertation argues for a conception of “cultural sin” in order to theologically diagnose the way that the expectations, norms, and behaviors around sexuality participate in campus rape culture. From a theological perspective, this cultural reality violates right relationship among human beings, the dual commandment to love both God and neighbor, and it is human beings who bear moral responsibility for this sinful situation. Finally, the fourth chapter argues for a tri-fold theological and moral response to rape culture: interruption, solidarity, and conscience. Interruption works to expose the violent reality of campus rape and rape culture, challenging what seem to be common sense, taken for granted, expectations around sex and gender. Solidarity demands that all persons identify themselves with those who are victimized. It requires that one’s everyday life regarding gender presentation and sexuality are guided by the conviction to challenge the culture that victimizes so many. Through conscience, persons are called to recognize their moral duty to challenge this culture and discern the ways to put this call into action. The conscience is what is able to guide persons in moral action for participation toward greater cultural transformation.