UKH

I found this quite powerful, it's an exhibition in Belgium entitled 'What were you wearing?' of the clothing which rape victims were wearing at the time of their attacks.

The idea that victims play a part in what happens to them, by flirting or wearing certain clothing is especially unhelpful given the shame and guilt victims can feel after the event.

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/rape-victims-clothes-displayed-bru...

It's a difficult topic, but the self blame apparently stems from not wanting to acknowledge how powerless they were at the time (and cultural norms too possibly). 

Anyway, in the exhibition is to be found jogging bottoms and rather dowdy clothing...

Interesting but I'm not sure how much it tells us. The vast majority of rapes are committed by men who know their victim, rather than reacting to the clothing of a complete stranger. The percentage of so called 'stranger rapes' is vanishingly small by comparison. 

Neither does the article tell us anything, at all, about the circumstances of the rapes they are talking about. It doesn't dispel any myths, it seems, alas, to be typical modern day under researched clickbait reporting by the Indy. 

Some people don't know the facts that you do. 

Some people still persist in victim blaming.  

Absolutely agree but the exhibition doesn't dispel any myths unless it explains what it's actually representing. Tbh it may be a problem with the woeful standard of reporting in the so called quality press these days. When I were a lad (insert interminable rambling here...) 

The Independent hasn’t been close to being the quality press for quite some time, like the Telegraph it is a pale shadow of its former self.

It might not have anything to do with journalism or the newspaper, surely it about the exhibition rather than the paper. Maybe the exhibition was simply that a display of clothes worn by rape victims, it might simply have been left at that; for the viewer to make up their own minds as to what that meant or represented. There doesn't really have to be any narrative about what's on display, like any "art" it's for the viewer to decide what they are seeing, or what's being represented.

I'd say marsbar is spot on, you can make your own conclusions and realise these aren't slutty women getting what they deserve/are asking for. This might be a more powerful message that actually saying the words.

Perhaps it won't dispel any myths but I think it is useful in that, as the article says, "... they are all very normal pieces that everyone would wear", it might help. I don't think a lot of people believe victims of rape brought it upon themselves but if this makes even a few think again its not a bad thing.

Dave

It's not just that though either, the fact these items are so mundane and common place, does it not give the message that "anyone can be a victim" and let's not get complacent and think it'll only happen to the "others"

I never had you down as a Telegraph reader

That just sounds like a bizarre exhibition.

Guardian household growing up, but always encouraged to understand alternative viewpoints, so there was sometimes a Telegraph in the house and the Sunday Times was bought more regularly than the Observer. I used to like to read both Guardian and Telegraph versions of the same story, plus the sports coverage was always quite good in the Telegraph. However, it seems to have long given up on proper journalism.

I'm not sure it much of a myth...more a defence cooked-up by morally devoid solicitors to get their clients off the hook.

There are numerous examples of this being advanced as a defence.

Examples:

www.nytimes.com/2018/11/15/world/europe/ireland-underwear-rape-case-protest.html

"You have to look at the way she was dressed. She was wearing a thong with a lace front."

www.theguardian.com/world/2002/aug/02/gender.uk

Victim was a 16 year old girl was "...asked to hold up the thong she was wearing on the night of the attack...". She later killed herself.