Law Commons^™

System Accountability And Sexual Assault: The Past And Future Of The Criminal Justice System, Alta Viscomi

Law Student Publications

The #MeToo Movement and the rise in the public consciousness of the impact of sexual violence has made abundantly clear that the legal rape reform movement that began in the 1970s was largely unsuccessful in stemming the tide of sexual violence. That movement was directed at the procedures in criminal justice system that make rape prosecutions easier for the state, but it failed to address the state’s role in enabling and perpetuating sexual violence. By failing to address those issues and by actively turning to carceral feminism, the state implemented a system in which sexual violence reporting remains low while …