Unfortunately, in our society male victims of sexual assault are often times overlooked. It is seen as something that mainly happens to women. Up until 2012 the FBI defined rape as "the carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will." When local authorities stopped reporting their cases of rape gender-bound, the FBI left out their data, until they revised their definition of rape with no mention of gender, force. Since, in society rape is seen as such a common thing for women, men fear that they will be seen as less of man if they come forward and report what happened to them.
One in thirty three men will be victims of sexual assault in their lifetime, while for women the numbers are higher, and estimated one in six women will be victims in their lifetime. It is believed that the numbers for men are higher, but a lot of them are too afraid to speak up. Based on the way we live today, we say that it isn't acceptable for a man to be vulnerable. They're supposed to be big, strong, masculine men. Because of this, victims are too afraid to say anything they think that they will be less of a man. Male victims deal with feelings of shame and anger, as well as low self-esteem, questions with their sexuality, and develop PTSD.
