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ABSTRACT
This article considers the problem of male/male rape. It explores reasons for the silence of the international community on the issue, principal among which is that it involves sexual activity between two men. Society considers any such contact to be indicative of homosexuality, regardless of any element of coercion. Given the prevalence of homophobia in society, this amounts to a "taint" on the part of the victim of the rape. This article explores the notion and extent of such a "taint" by analyzing the role of language and the stigma as felt by survivors, as intended by perpetrators, and as perpetuated by the state.
I. INTRODUCTION
Many articles have been written on the subject of rape. However, references to the rape by a man of a man (male/male rape) are few and far between. In the articles that do reference this important problem, all that is had is a mention, a point to be noted in passing before moving on to the next issue.1 The same is true of reports of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and intergovernmental organizations (IGOs).2 Often the issue is deemed to merit discussion in reports dealing with sexual violence perpetrated against women. Even then, the sole discussion relates to the difficulties faced in trying to gather details of male/male rapes.
Four combinations of actors are possible in a single perpetrator rape-the rape by a man of a woman (male/female rape), the rape by a woman of a woman (female/female rape), the rape by a woman of a man (female/male rape), and the rape by a man of a man (male/male rape). Given the shocking number of male/female rapes that are committed each year, the risk of pregnancy associated with such rapes, and the successful and consistent efforts of the women's movement, that male/female rape first garnered the attention of the international community is not surprising (Part II). What is surprising is the silence surrounding the three other types of rape. This article proposes to explore the reasons for the non-consideration of one of those, male/male rape (Part III).3
This article argues that the problem of male/male rape has not been addressed for two reasons. First, the subject of male/male rape is a cause without a voice. There are very few...