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Victim blaming

In cases of sexual assault, why do people so often blame the victim?

The trauma of sexual assault is both personal and brutal. But what may be an indisputably traumatic event for one person is often challenged by another, and the responsibility for events gets scattered in the process. Why is it so common for people to look for reasons to blame the victims of sexual assault for what has happened to them?

Nastaran Tavakoli-Far finds multiple reasons from this, speaking to experts and to victims. We hear from Dr Mithu Sanyal about the role of long-standing attitudes towards gender and sexuality. New York Times journalists Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey tell us about power and the workplace and who is more likely to be believed. Dr Jackson Katz and Dr Laura Niemi explain the roles of both group dynamics and the language we use and how these often work to protect perpetrators rather than to support victims

Presenter and producer: Nastaran Tavakoli-Far
Editor: Andrew Smith

(Photo: Protest sign held up during 'Slut Walk' protests against victim blaming in Munich, Germany / Credit: Alexander Pohl / Nur Photo / Getty Images)

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24 minutes

Last on

Sun 12 Jan 2020 05:32GMT

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  • Mon 6 Jan 2020 09:06GMT
  • Mon 6 Jan 2020 13:32GMT
  • Mon 6 Jan 2020 18:06GMT
  • Mon 6 Jan 2020 21:06GMT
  • Mon 6 Jan 2020 23:06GMT
  • Tue 7 Jan 2020 02:32GMT
  • Tue 7 Jan 2020 03:32GMT
  • Sun 12 Jan 2020 05:32GMT

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