TW: Discussion of sexual violence, harassment, graphic definitions, heteronormativity, cisnormativity.
Sexual violence refers to any form of non-consensual sexual contact, abuse or coercion and should not be tolerated. Unfortunately, these are all things which may happen to or be perpetrated by members of the LGBTQ+ community; regardless of sexuality or gender identity.
If someone groped you on the bus, if someone pressured you into taking a hook-up further than you wanted to, if someone made you touch them, if someone had sex with you when you didn’t say yes, that’s sexual violence.
Nonconsensual sexual contact is sexual violence.
The legal definitions of sexual violence in the UK are as follows:
There are many forms of sexual violence which are criminal under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, including rape, sexual assault, causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, and voyeurism.
Disclaimer- The LGBTQ+ Society recognises the cisnormativity and heteronormativity of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and its exclusion of trans and gender non conforming individuals and non heterosexual individuals. We also want to emphasise that the legal definitions do not constrict a survivor’s choice on how to label their experience. Due to the heteronormativity and cisnormativity of these definitions they don’t actually cover sexual violence between queer and non cis folk, something which does happen, therefore we encourage survivors to choose how and if to label their experience in any way that makes them feel comfortable.
Rape
The intentional penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth of another person with a penis, without the consent of the individual(s) or if the person penetrating does not reasonably believe they have the consent of the other person(s).
Whether a belief is reasonable is to be determined having regard to all the circumstances, including any steps the person penetrating has taken to ascertain whether the other person(s) consents.
(See sections 1 and 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
Assault by penetration
The non consensual intentional penetration of the vagina or anus with any body part e.g. fingers (not the penis) or any object e.g. sex toy.
(See sections 1 and 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
Sexual Assault
Sexual assault covers a wide range of possible conduct.
Sexual assault is any non-consensual touching of a person that is sexual.
Touching is sexual, according to English law, if it is by its nature inherently sexual, or if because of the circumstances or the purpose of the person doing the touching it is sexual. This is a very broad definition indeed. Sexual assault can range from stroking or grabbing someone’s body for sexual reasons without consent to non consensual masturbation of another person.
(See sections 3 and 78 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
Central to these offences is the concept of “consent”. The acts described in the offences are only criminal if they are done to a person who does not consent.
According to English law: “a person consents if they agree by choice, and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice.” (See sections 74 to 76 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
It is presumed that a person does not have the freedom to consent if violence is used against them or threatened at the time of or just prior to the sexual act.
A person does not have capacity to consent if they are asleep or unconscious.
A person may lack capacity to consent it they are seriously impaired by drug or alcohol use.
English law makes it clear that a person who is intoxicated may not have the capacity to consent to sexual acts, even if they are conscious. This means that while it is possible to consent when intoxicated, a person may sometimes be too drunk to give effective consent. It is impossible to draw a clear line between someone who is drunk but still able to consent, and someone who is too drunk to consent. The best thing to do is adhere by best practice, if there is any doubt, err on the side of caution, always.
Ascertaining consent is as easy as saying “is this okay?”, “Do you like this?”, “yes?”. It isn’t a contract, it isn’t an ordeal, it’s just good communication.
Consent can be described as...
Affirmative – not an absence of ‘"no" but the presence of ‘"yes".
Active – silence is not consent, nor is participation.
Freely Given – not something someone can be pressured into giving.
Temporary – never implied, and can be revoked.
Conscious – consent can’t be given when a person is unconscious or incapacitated by drugs or alcohol.
Mandatory – absolutely necessary, and is as easy as asking,‘"Is this okay?" and "Do you like this?"
Consent is not a contract, and can be withdrawn at any point.
There are more complex laws concerning children, people in positions of trust, people with a mental disorder which impedes choice, people with various mental illnesses etc, these are outlined in the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 also discusses indecent photographs of children, sexual exploitation of children, prostitution and trafficking.
Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment is unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature which:
• Violates your dignity
• Makes you feel intimidated, degraded or humiliated • Creates a hostile or offensive environment
You don’t need to have previously objected to someone's behaviour for it to be considered unwanted.
You can read more about sexual harassment here [linked- https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law=and-courts/discrimination/what-are-the-different-types-of-discrimination/sexual-harassment/]
Sexual violence refers to any form of non-consensual sexual contact, abuse or coercion and should not be tolerated. Unfortunately, these are all things which may happen to or be perpetrated by members of the LGBTQ+ community; regardless of sexuality or gender identity.
If someone groped you on the bus, if someone pressured you into taking a hook-up further than you wanted to, if someone made you touch them, if someone had sex with you when you didn’t say yes, that’s sexual violence.
- Regardless of what their gender is or what your gender is
- Regardless of whether you know them or not.
- Regardless of what you were wearing.
- Regardless of how much you had to drink or had taken drugs.
- Regardless of anything else.
Nonconsensual sexual contact is sexual violence.
The legal definitions of sexual violence in the UK are as follows:
There are many forms of sexual violence which are criminal under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, including rape, sexual assault, causing a person to engage in sexual activity without consent, and voyeurism.
Disclaimer- The LGBTQ+ Society recognises the cisnormativity and heteronormativity of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 and its exclusion of trans and gender non conforming individuals and non heterosexual individuals. We also want to emphasise that the legal definitions do not constrict a survivor’s choice on how to label their experience. Due to the heteronormativity and cisnormativity of these definitions they don’t actually cover sexual violence between queer and non cis folk, something which does happen, therefore we encourage survivors to choose how and if to label their experience in any way that makes them feel comfortable.
Rape
The intentional penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth of another person with a penis, without the consent of the individual(s) or if the person penetrating does not reasonably believe they have the consent of the other person(s).
Whether a belief is reasonable is to be determined having regard to all the circumstances, including any steps the person penetrating has taken to ascertain whether the other person(s) consents.
(See sections 1 and 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
Assault by penetration
The non consensual intentional penetration of the vagina or anus with any body part e.g. fingers (not the penis) or any object e.g. sex toy.
(See sections 1 and 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
Sexual Assault
Sexual assault covers a wide range of possible conduct.
Sexual assault is any non-consensual touching of a person that is sexual.
Touching is sexual, according to English law, if it is by its nature inherently sexual, or if because of the circumstances or the purpose of the person doing the touching it is sexual. This is a very broad definition indeed. Sexual assault can range from stroking or grabbing someone’s body for sexual reasons without consent to non consensual masturbation of another person.
(See sections 3 and 78 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
Central to these offences is the concept of “consent”. The acts described in the offences are only criminal if they are done to a person who does not consent.
According to English law: “a person consents if they agree by choice, and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice.” (See sections 74 to 76 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003).
It is presumed that a person does not have the freedom to consent if violence is used against them or threatened at the time of or just prior to the sexual act.
A person does not have capacity to consent if they are asleep or unconscious.
A person may lack capacity to consent it they are seriously impaired by drug or alcohol use.
English law makes it clear that a person who is intoxicated may not have the capacity to consent to sexual acts, even if they are conscious. This means that while it is possible to consent when intoxicated, a person may sometimes be too drunk to give effective consent. It is impossible to draw a clear line between someone who is drunk but still able to consent, and someone who is too drunk to consent. The best thing to do is adhere by best practice, if there is any doubt, err on the side of caution, always.
Ascertaining consent is as easy as saying “is this okay?”, “Do you like this?”, “yes?”. It isn’t a contract, it isn’t an ordeal, it’s just good communication.
Consent can be described as...
Affirmative – not an absence of ‘"no" but the presence of ‘"yes".
Active – silence is not consent, nor is participation.
Freely Given – not something someone can be pressured into giving.
Temporary – never implied, and can be revoked.
Conscious – consent can’t be given when a person is unconscious or incapacitated by drugs or alcohol.
Mandatory – absolutely necessary, and is as easy as asking,‘"Is this okay?" and "Do you like this?"
Consent is not a contract, and can be withdrawn at any point.
There are more complex laws concerning children, people in positions of trust, people with a mental disorder which impedes choice, people with various mental illnesses etc, these are outlined in the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
The Sexual Offences Act 2003 also discusses indecent photographs of children, sexual exploitation of children, prostitution and trafficking.
Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment is unwanted behaviour of a sexual nature which:
• Violates your dignity
• Makes you feel intimidated, degraded or humiliated • Creates a hostile or offensive environment
You don’t need to have previously objected to someone's behaviour for it to be considered unwanted.
You can read more about sexual harassment here [linked- https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law=and-courts/discrimination/what-are-the-different-types-of-discrimination/sexual-harassment/]
