Hi. I’m a high school senior and was considering Rutgers University. My major is Cognitive Science btw. As I was doing my research I came across some students talking about the rape culture and racism there. I am an Indian girl coming to the US for my education. So this is a really important decision for me. If it’s actually really bad I’ll rule out Rutgers as an option. But I really liked it and was genuinely interested. It would be really helpful if some current or ex students could give their feedback or experiences to help me figure this out.
Hi I am a current student, also an Indian female. I personally don’t know any of my peers who got raped. However, at frat parties, it is a real thing and something that you can take steps to prevent. Make sure you’re never alone with a guy. Also make sure your drinks are always being watched over for possible tampering. Never be out at night alone, consider investing in pepper spray. Use common sense. Also, try to avoid frat parties when possible. There are parties such as ethnic parties which are much safer but still abide by these rules. If you use common sense and are aware, you should not be worried about being raped.
Also Rutgers is a pretty diverse place, and I’ve never experienced or seen racism firsthand.
When people talk about “rape culture”, they’re not talking about roaming gangs of rapists on campus. Although women and some men are sexually assaulted by strangers while walking across campus, that isn’t what is generally meant either. What the term refers to is about how sexual assault being trivialized, consent is not considered important, etc. It is when being raped is more of a stigma than being a rapist…
Essentially, it means that the prevailing culture that it’s up to people to avoid getting raped, rather than it being up to people to avoid raping.
The fact that @Tictacmissus’s first response to your question is “these are the ways in which you should behave to avoid being raped” exemplifies the core issues of rape culture. She isn’t wrong, mind you, and her advice is really good, but that is, essentially, the central issue of rape culture.
That being said, Rutgers is not any worse than any other campus, and, overall, things are better than they were in previous decades, and things are getting better at Rutgers and elsewhere.