The Affirmative “Yes”. Sexual Offense Based on Consent

Abstract

The collective rape case that occurred in Spain during a 2016 famous festival placed the trial against its five aggressors on an unprecedented media and social scale in Spain. The court that ruled for sexual abuse and not for rape sparked a huge and prompt social rejection of the current legislation. To overcome revictimization and give voice to survivors, the consideration of consent has been raised. This new paradigm has deeply spread in society and social networks to the point that the Spanish government has expressed its interest in modifying the Criminal Code to base sexual crimes on consent. In our duty to provide scientific knowledge for this issue, this article frames the debate on sexual harassment and focuses on the crime against sexual freedom and the context under which consent can neither be asked for nor conceived. This article analyzes the aggravating crime factors while basing consent on the intention of the offender. Starting from international approaches, this article emphasizes the current social opportunity needed to create awareness and transform laws with the aim of legislating on affirmative “yes”. This approach contributes to the challenge of overcoming gender violence and to the study of masculinities and their influence on social transformation.

Our Right to the Pleasure of Falling in Love

“…Conversely, we expect love to be a protective factor against the CDD. With our results we expect to extend the social impact of psychology by providing some answers that allow to move forward toward violence-free and consented sexual-affective relationships (Vidu Afloarei and Tomás Martínez, 2019).…”

Entre la Coacción y el Consentimiento: Un Estudio sobre la Violencia Sexual Masculina en las Relaciones de Pareja Heterosexuales

“…The 2017 review by Rubio-Garay et al also suggests that we relate it to a socio-cultural context which has been unable to destroy the myths around sexuality and false beliefs, such as sex being a "marital duty", that men need more sex than women (Finkelhor &Yllö,1983) and the woman's responsibility for her partner's actions (Sosa &Menkes, 2016). Again, the complexity of consent (Afloarei, & Martínez, 2019) highlights, on the one hand, the need for a cognitive change in the perception, understanding and relationship between the sexes (Mañas, et al 2018). On the other hand, a precise definition of consent is key to overcoming sexual violence, which in turn underpins gender violence.…”

Contributions from Social Theory to Sustainability for All

“…Indeed, NAM men break the double standard of the CDD that associates violent men with attraction and excitement, and non-violent men with kindness but not desire. Jesús Gómez, in his book Radical Love [40] and other research from the perspective of the preventive socialization of gender-based violence [41][42][43] have identified the main characteristics that NAMs share. These include self-confidence, strength and courage as strategies to confront the negative attitudes of traditional dominant masculinities associated with violence.…”