Virtually anyone who has survived sexual assault or experienced sexual harassment knows how painful victim-blaming can be. Survivors are often asked what they were wearing, what they did to “encourage” the perpetrator, or even why they didn’t fight back more.
Despite the recent rise of the #MeToo movement, victim-blaming remains a tenacious problem. In fact, it may be more tenacious than any of us imagined. That's because the tendency to blame the victim may be programmed into the human mind at a very basic level. Ask yourself if you've ever wondered whether the victims of a crime or accident had done something to set themselves up for their tragedy? Victim-blaming doesn’t have to involve accusing survivors of directly causing their own misfortune. It can involve the simple thought that you would have been more careful, implying that the tragedy was at least partially their fault. Tune in and learn all about victim blaming and how to confront it!