Let’s not forget there are pro-rapists already living in Australia

Keeping one or two “neo-masculinists” and legal rape advocates out of the country isn’t that great a victory if there are already men brazenly preaching pro-rape attitudes right here on our shores.

By now you’ve probably heard of Daryush​ “Roosh” Valizadeh, the leader of a disturbing neo-masculinist group, Return of Kings, who believes that rape on private property should not be a crime.

Daryush Valizadeh, founder of Return of Kings. (Pic: Instagram)

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has said that Valizadeh is unlikely to enter Australia and currently has no visa. This follows Dutton’s decision last month to cancel the visa of American pick-up-artist Jeff Allen on character grounds.

Allen, who advocates “choking” women and who has bragged about his “rape van”, had planned to tour Australia, advising young men on his “seduction” techniques.

Pick-up artist Jeff Allen. (Pic: Supplied)

Keeping these men out of Australia seems like a sensible decision.

But I’m also fed up by the way we selectively obsess over men like Valizadeh and Allen, while ignoring men who are already preaching pro-rape attitudes on our shores. Putting all our efforts into keeping one or two men out of the country isn’t that great a victory if there are already men living in our country who preach very similar sentiments.

Take, for example, the leaders of various faiths who assert there is no such thing as rape within marriage. How is this position any different from arguing that rape in some contexts should not be considered a crime?

In 2009, the media rightly exposed and admonished Samir Abu Hamza, a Muslim cleric from Melbourne who told a group of Sydney followers that it is acceptable for men to rape and beat their wives. Hamza also ridiculed Australian marital rape laws, adding incredulously “Amazing, how can a person rape his wife?”.

Yet a quick search online shows that Hamza has continued to preach to Australian audiences, and was still preaching in Melbourne in 2012 and possibly later.

Islamic cleric Samir Abu Hamza has preached his views on rape and marriage for years within Australia. (Pic: Supplied)

Similarly, where precisely was the media outrage when Anglican Media Sydney (the media arm of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney) published a disturbing post under the title “As a good Christian wife, can I say ‘No’ to my husband when he wants sex?”

According to the law in New South Wales — where the troubling post was first published — the answer to the woman’s question is unequivocally “yes”. Of course a woman has the right to say “no” to unwanted sex.

Giving clear advice on this topic is especially important when you consider that rape within marriage is still one of the most under-reported crimes.

And yet AMS published advice stating that the answer is only “maybe” and that “marriage ceases to work as [God] designed, if one person denies the other person sex”.

Quoting the bible, the post also states that a “wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does”, and wives who do not want to submit to unwanted sex should “pray to God” that they will be made “more servant hearted”.

“Reflect on the purpose of sex in marriage”, reads the AMS response, “and work out whether you have some valid reason for not having sex at this time, or whether you need to repent and work hard to be a better servant to your husband.”

Repent? Be a better servant? A woman has no authority over her own body?

What’s striking is how similar this language is to that used by Valizadeh, Allen and other pick-up-artists and men’s rights activists. Indeed, the Sydney Anglican Diocese’s recent push to have women recite marriage vows which include a promise to “submit” to their husbands could have come straight out of the Return of Kings’ own handbook (unsurprisingly, the Anglican Diocese does not expect men to make any such equivalent promise to their wives, in case you were wondering).

The truth is that while we might like to jump up and down and point fingers at these nasty American misogynists, there are still plenty of folks right here who continue to believe that men are entitled to assert their “conjugal rights” against women who don’t want it. These are mostly “ordinary” individuals, who hail from every class, culture, and community, who simply believe that rape laws do not — or should not — apply in private relationships.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, of women who have been raped, one in 10 have been raped by a current or former partner — although the percentage is likely far higher as this is a notoriously under reported crime.

In NSW, rape within marriage was only fully criminalised in the 1980s and there has been continual push back from conservative groups ever since. Indeed, even in progressive communities, it often takes a while for community attitudes, practices and beliefs to fully catch up with legislative changes.

So by all means we should stop these vile American troglodytes from entering Australia. But let’s not then lose sight of the insidious efforts to erode women’s rights — especially in regards to our sexual autonomy — as is already happening right under our noses.

These local threats are every bit as dangerous as men like Valizadeh and Allen. Possibly even more so, because they are already living among us.

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