This is the cultural practice of blaming the victims (normally of sexual violence) by saying or implying that the violence resulted from what they did or did not do, instead of placing the blame where it belongs: the person responsible for the violence.
Victim blaming centres on three main categories:
- Behaviour: for example, if the victim was drinking or walking home alone.
- Characteristics: for example, if she flirts or is very self-confident.
- Situation: for example, if they went to a house party.
In all of these cases, the focus is placed on the victim, not on the person who committed the aggression.
Another significant part of victim blaming involves the use of passive language, which focuses the attention on the women, not on the aggressor. For example, “Jane was attacked by John as she left her house”, instead of, “John attacked Jane as she left her house”.