During the Miss USA pageant, Miss Nevada – Nia Sanchez – was asked about sexual assault. Sanchez, a fourth-degree black belt in taekwondo, suggested offering women’s self-defense classes as a way to combat rape.
The feminist Twitterverse promptly erupted in a paroxysm of outrage. In the eyes of many contemporary feminists, advising others to take preventive action in order to avoid harm relieves those who inflict harm of moral culpability.
Because Sanchez was advocating self-defense training as a practical way to reduce sexual assault, the thinking goes, Miss Nevada was placing the moral onus on women to take self-defense classes rather than on rapists not to attack their victims.
Conservatives responded to the explosion with incredulity. “So wait — now it’s ‘unfeminist’ to defend yourself if attacked?” asked Dana Loesch. “Jesus take the wheel.”
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Not happy w/ Miss Nevada’s answer that to stop rape we should teach women to defend themselves…Why don’t we teach men to not rape?
— Kelsey Bemus (@KelseyBemus) June 9, 2014
Women shouldn’t need to learn to protect themselves against rape #missnevada educate and respect yourself as a woman #rapeculture
— Anna Beth West (@annabethwest) June 9, 2014