A History of Marital Rape

Hafza Mohamad

During the era of the 1970s and 1980s, there was a strong force from women to gain more freedom and liberation over their bodies, which had sparked the anti-rape movement. Unfortunately, throughout women’s history, women’s rights and needs have always been an afterthought. It is well known that in history, women did not have a choice in who they could marry, nor could they divorce if their spouse was severely mistreating them. This led to a road of many obstacles that women would have to overcome when it came to their marriage. As time went on there was a shift in public views surrounding the marriage, and what power a husband could have over his wife. One of the more notable court cases Weishaupt v. Commonwealth that took place in Virginia, 1984. This case had highlighted the ways a woman named Janet was brutally raped by her spouse Mr. Weishaupt by forcefully entering her home. Fortunately, he was convicted but in many states, it was still legal to rape a spouse. Eventually, marital rape became illegal in all fifty states by 1993. In conclusion, this project had allowed me to gain even greater insight into the ways women were mistreated through history. It also demonstrated the different ways rape was being handled under the court of law, and how the decision of marital rape to become officially outlawed came to be. This project directly correlates with the material that has been covered over the semester as it links the ways women had no control over their bodies.

Refrences:

Ryan, R. (1995). The Sex Right: A Legal History of the Marital Rape Exemption. Law & Social Inquiry,20(4), 941-1001. doi:10.1111/j.1747-4469.1995.tb00697.x