Rethinking Consent

Nordic Model Now! is a UK secular feminist grassroots women’s group campaigning for the abolition of prostitution and related practices (such as lapdancing, pornography and surrogacy).

Nordic Model Now!

Many experts consider rape to be more or less <a href="https://victimscommissioner.org.uk/news/the-distressing-truth-is-that-if-you-are-raped-in-britain-today-your-chances-of-seeing-justice-are-slim/" title="https://victimscommissioner.org.uk/news/the-distressing-truth-is-that-if-you-are-raped-in-britain-today-your-chances-of-seeing-justice-are-slim/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">decriminalised</a> in England and Wales. Of the <a href="https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-informed/statistics-sexual-violence/" title="https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-informed/statistics-sexual-violence/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">68,109 rapes recorded by police</a> between July 2022 and June 2023, charges were brought in only 1,498 cases. That means that just 2% of recorded rapes resulted in someone being charged – and by no means all of those charges will result in a conviction – so the conviction rate is likely to be around 1% of recorded rapes. And, of course, only a minority of victims report rape to the police. So, yes, that does sound pretty much like impunity.This webinar will be asking whether we need to reconsider how we think about rape. Maybe the very idea of “consent” is flawed. Doesn’t it suggest that sex is something done by someone (no doubt male) to someone else (typically female)? What does that imply about the status of women versus the status of men? And is the legal definition of consent part of the problem?How does the widespread acceptance of prostitution impact on this understanding and vice versa? Some <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24121089_Another_Theory_of_Prostitution" title="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24121089_Another_Theory_of_Prostitution" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">economists</a> consider that what is being bought in prostitution is not “sex” but rather the “control of sex”. He pays so he is in control and if she wants to be paid, she has no choice but to go along with it regardless whether it is painful, terrifying, or gross. What is the meaning of “consent” in that scenario? And how does it affect men’s understanding of sex with an (unpaid) intimate partner?What about the impact of internet pornography? A <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/27/online-pornography-breaks-french-law-equality-watchdog-france" title="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/27/online-pornography-breaks-french-law-equality-watchdog-france" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">recent study by a French government watchdog</a> found that 90% of mainstream internet porn involves verbal abuse, or physical or sexual violence, often in violation of French laws against sexism, racism, violence, and even torture. How is that impacting all of our understandings of sexual relationships?We are thrilled that Wendy Murphy, a US professor of Sexual Violence and Law Reform, will be speaking at this webinar along with Esther, a British survivor of prostitution with extensive knowledge of the legal system in England and Wales. <h2>Programme</h2>Wendy Murphy: IT'S AUTONOMY NOT CONSENT, AND TORTURE NOT PORN: The language we use matters when we talk about the harm women experience from sexual exploitation, not only linguistically but also legally. Consent is often the focus of conversation, but how does it differ from autonomy, and what's the best way to articulate the difference in law and society? And what are the limits of consent? Should we be thinking differently about consent and autonomy in the context of established legal limitations, such as torture?Esther: Esther will discuss how sexual scripts and practices derived from porn, which men often test out on prostituted women and then claim as essential aspects of the modern sexual curriculum, have shifted expectations in intimate relationships and affected how "consent" is understood by many in wider society.Q&amp;A: Discussion and responses to questions submitted by the audience. <h2>Webinar details</h2>The webinar will be hosted in Zoom and is expected to last about 90 minutes. We will email registered attendees shortly before the event with details of how to join. If you can’t see the email, please check your spam folders. <h2>Questions</h2>There will be an option to submit questions during the event, but you are welcome to email in advance any questions you would like the panel to consider. Please put ‘Webinar Question’ in the subject line and email it to info@nordicmodelnow.org. Time constraints mean, however, that we will be limited in how many questions we can address. <h2>This is a mixed event</h2>This event is open to everyone. The event will include discussion of some of the worst forms of male violence. We ask everyone, but particularly men, to be mindful of this and how both speakers and members of the audience may find this triggering because it resonates with their own experiences of male violence. We ask everyone to be open and respectful. <h2>Speakers</h2>Esther: Esther has a longstanding interest in research on legal and public policy approaches to sexualised violence and domestic abuse. She uses her own experience of porn and prostitution to reflect on these issues.Emily Husain: Emily is a civil barrister and feminist who has volunteered with women’s organisations and groups addressing violence against women for several years. Emily has a particular interest in the domestic and international legislative framework surrounding prostitution and she joined NMN in 2023. Emily will chair the webinar.Wendy Murphy: Wendy has served as adjunct professor of Sexual Violence and Law Reform at New England Law | Boston for more than twenty years where she also co-directs the Women’s and Children’s Advocacy Project (WCAP) under the Center for Law and Social Responsibility. Wendy founded the Judicial Language Project, which uses sociolinguistic research to critique the language used in law and society to describe violence against women and children. She writes amicus briefs and engages in public interest litigation to advance the rights of women and children. In addition, Wendy runs the JD/PhD project which brings together a JD student and PhD student to work across disciplines in the development of a written critique of the methodological reliability of scientific research to either enhance or prevent its admissibility in legal proceedings, and impact on human behavior. In 2020 Wendy filed a landmark federal lawsuit to validate the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) and establish women's equality under the United States Constitution.Wendy served as a Visiting Scholar at Harvard Law School from 2002-03 and was the Mary Joe Frug Assistant Professor of Law at New England Law | Boston from 2001-2002. She is a former child abuse and sex crimes prosecutor. In 1992, Wendy founded the first legal organization in the nation to provide pro bono legal services to victims of sexual and other forms of violence involved in the criminal justice system. She is an impact litigator who practices in state and federal court and specializes in the advancement of constitutional and civil rights for women and children.Wendy is the author of numerous scholarly articles including a landmark piece explaining the legal relationship between sexual assault on campus and Title IX. Dubbed the “Goddaughter of Title IX” by the “Godmother of Title IX,” Dr. Bernice Sandler, Wendy filed many lawsuits involving Title IX and campus sexual assault, beginning in the early 1990s, resulting in groundbreaking victories against Harvard College in 2002, and Harvard Law School and Princeton University in 2010. These cases led to widespread awareness and reforms, including the well-known April 2011, Dear Colleague Letter.Wendy is fiercely non-partisan and has worked as a legal analyst for several national network and cable television channels. Described by Emmy Award-winning journalist Emily Rooney as the “best talker” on television with a “finger on the pulse of victims’ and women’s rights” Wendy has worked for NBC, CBS, CNN, and Fox News. She is the author of “And Justice For Some,” published by Penguin/Sentinel in 2007 and has a new book coming out in April 2023 entitled, “Oh No He Didn’t, Brilliant Women and the Men Who Took Credit for Their Work."

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Rethinking Consent

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