What is stealthing and why is it sexual assault Between law and consent, we have not yet learned to recognize it as such
Removing a condom during sexual intercourse without the other person knowing or having given their consent has a name: stealthing. The term indicates a practice in which a person agrees to have intercourse only on condition that a condom is used, but the partner secretly removes it during intercourse or, in some cases, pretends to have worn it. It is therefore not simply a question of 'using or not using a condom': it concerns the conditions under which a person has chosen to have sexual intercourse.
What the data tells us about stealthing, the practice of removing a condom without consent
Scientific research on the phenomenon is still relatively limited, but the available data show that the episodes are very frequent. A study published in 2018 in PLOS ONE, conducted among patients at a sexual health center in Melbourne, collected the responses of 1,084 women and 872 men who have sex with men. 32% of the women and 19% of the men involved stated that they had undergone non-consensual condom removal at least once.
@consenttips Replying to @Ratchet_of_Delphi This is SA. #metoo #feminism #feminist #sexualassault #fyp Moonlit Melody Brew - Penny Siren
The importance of prevention and awareness
The problem is not just about consent. The condom is one of the tools used to reduce the risk of unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. Removing without consent therefore eliminates a protection that the person had explicitly chosen to use. In the Australian study, more than half of the people who had experienced stealthing reported that they had discussed the incident with their partner after intercourse and more than half said they had experienced severe emotional distress. Only 1% had reported the incident to the police.
@itsmillyevans It’s important to call it what it is so more people take it seriously [fleece was gifted, no obligation to post] #healtheducation #healthyrelationship #consent original sound - Milly Evans • s x educator
This last fact also shows another problem: many people do not immediately recognize stealthing as a form of sexual violence. In the same study, 62% of women and 61% of men who had undergone non-consensual condom removal considered it sexual violence, compared to 85% and 84% respectively among those who had not experienced that experience.
Does justice run its course? The legislation on stealthing in the world
From a legal point of view, there is no single answer valid in all countries. In fact, stealthing is not a crime independently defined by this name in most legal systems: its qualification depends on the laws on consent and sexual violence. In England and Wales, for example, the Crown Prosecution Service states that consent can be given to sexual activity under certain conditions, including the use of a condom. If that condition is violated, the relationship may constitute rape or another form of sexual violence, depending on the circumstances. Even in California, the legislator has intervened specifically on the issue: in 2021, a law introduced a form of civil liability for those who remove a condom during intercourse without the verbal consent of the partner. In other systems, however, the situation is more complex and it may be necessary to trace the behavior back to existing crimes. In Massachusetts, for example, the law does not contain a general definition of sexual consent, but several crimes, including rape and indecent assault and battery, require the absence of consent.
@scepa__ Risposta a @seesistoesiste rispondiamo ad un po' di commenti ABERRANTI sul caso Asia Vitale e sulla vi0l3nz4 s3ssu4l3 #asia #violenzasulledonne #misogony #femminismo #italia suono originale - Scepa
Consent can be revoked at any time during sexual intercourse
The central point, however, remains simpler than the legal classification: allowing sexual intercourse with a condom does not mean allowing the same intercourse without a condom. Consent is not a valid pass for anything that happens during the relationship. It can be conditioned, modified or withdrawn. Consent also concerns the conditions of intercourse, and a condom may be one of those conditions.