The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., U.S.A., the U.S. of A, the States, and America, is a country in North America. A federal republic, the United States shares land borders with Canada and Mexico, and extends from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. Its capital is Washington, D.C.
The present-day United States has been inhabited for at least 15,000 years by Native Americans. After 16th-century European exploration, the British established colonies in the eastern portion of the continent in the 17th century. On 4 July 1776, at war with Britain over fair governance, thirteen of these colonies declared their independence; in 1783, the war ended in British acceptance of the new nation. Since then, the country has more than quadrupled in size: it now consists of 50 states, one federal district, and a number of overseas territories.
At over 3.7 million square miles (over 9.1 million km²), the U.S. is the third largest country by area. Home to nearly 300 million people, it is the world's third most populous nation.
The United States has maintained a liberal democratic political system since it adopted its constitution on September 17, 1787. American military and economic stature increased throughout the 20th century; with the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War, the nation emerged as the world's sole superpower.[1]
Contents [hide]
1 Name
2 History
3 Government and politics
4 Foreign relations and military
5 States and territories
6 Ecology
6.1 Geography and climate
6.2 Flora and fauna
7 Economy
8 Demographics
8.1 Language
8.2 Religion
8.3 Education
8.4 Health
9 Culture
10 See also
11 Notes
12 Further reading
13 External links
13.1 Government
13.2 Overviews
13.3 History
13.4 Maps
13.5 Immigration
[edit]
Name
The earliest known use of the name America is from 1507, when a globe and a large map created by the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller in Saint-Dié-des-Vosges described the combined continents of North and South America. Although the origin of the name is uncertain[2], the most widely held belief is that expressed in an accompanying book, Cosmographiae Introductio, which explains it as a feminized version of the Latin name of Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci (Americus Vespucius); in Latin, as the other continents' names were all feminine.
The Americas, including the region encompassing the thirteen colonies, were originally known as Columbia, prompting the name District of Columbia for the land set aside for the nation's capital. Columbia remained a popular name for the United States until the early twentieth century, when it fell into relative disuse; but it is still used poetically and appears in various names and titles. A female personification of the country is also called Columbia; she is similar to Britannia. [3],[4],[5],[6],[7]
The term "united States of America" was first used officially in the Declaration of Independence, adopted on 4 July 1776. On 15 November 1777, the Second Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, the first of which stated "The Stile of this Confederacy shall be 'The United States of America.'"
The adjectival and demonymic forms for the United States are American, a point of controversy among some.
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History
Main article: History of the United States
The Mayflower, which transported Pilgrims to the New World, arrived in 1620.Before the European colonization of the Americas, a process that began at the end of the 15th century, the present-day U.S. was inhabited exclusively by Native Americans, who arrived on the continent over a period that may have begun 35,000 years ago and may have ended as recently as 11,000 years ago.[8] The first successful English settlement was at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607, followed in 1620 by the Pilgrims' landing at Plymouth, Massachusetts. Within the following two decades, several Dutch settlements, including New Amsterdam (later New York City), were established; New Sweden was founded by the Swedes in Delaware, and extensive British settlement of the east coast continued making up the original thirteen colonies that would form the United States in 1776.
Presenting the Declaration of Independence to the Continental Congress.
Tensions between American colonials and the British during the revolutionary period of the 1760s and 1770s led to open military conflict in 1775. George Washington commanded the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) as the Second Continental Congress adopted the Declaration of Independence on 4 July 1776. The Second Continental Congress had been formed to confront British actions, and did create the Continental Army, but did not have the authority to levy taxes or make federal laws. In 1777, the Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation, uniting the states under a weak federal government, which operated from 1781 until 1788, when enough states had ratified the United States Constitution. The Constitution, which strengthened the union and the federal government, has since remained the supreme law of the land.[9]
National Atlas map depicting dates of territorial acquisitions.From 1803 to 1848, the size of the new nation nearly tripled as settlers (many entrenched with the concept of Manifest Destiny as an inevitable consequence of American exceptionalism) pushed beyond national boundaries even before the Louisiana Purchase.[10] The expansion was tempered somewhat by the stalemate in the War of 1812, but was subsequently reinvigorated by victory in the Mexican–American War in 1848.
The Battle of Gettysburg, the bloodiest battle and turning point of the American Civil War. The victory of the Union kept the country united.As new territories were being incorporated, the nation was divided over the issue of states' rights, the role of the federal government, and, by the 1820s, the expansion of slavery. The Northern states were opposed to the expansion of slavery whereas the Southern states saw the opposition as an attack on their way of life, since their economy was dependent on slave labor. The failure to permanently resolve these issues led to the American Civil War, following the secession of many slave states in the South to form the Confederate States of America after the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln.[11] The 1865 Union victory in the Civil War effectively ended slavery, as well as settling the question of whether a state had the right to secede. The event was a major turning point in American history, with an increase in federal power.[12]
After the Civil War, an unprecedented influx of immigrants, who helped to provide labor for American industry and create diverse communities in undeveloped areas together with high tariff protections, national infrastructure building, and national banking regulations, hastened the country's rise to international power. The United States subsequently gained new territories as a result of its growing power status, including the annexation of Puerto Rico after victory in the Spanish–American War,[13] which marked the beginning of the U.S. as a major world power.
Landing at Ellis Island, 1902. Immigration helped spur the American economy.At the start of the First World War, in 1914, the U.S. remained neutral; but, in 1917, the U.S. joined the Allied Powers, helping to turn the tide against the Central Powers. For historical reasons, American sympathies were very much in favor of the British and French, even though a sizable number of citizens, mostly Irish and German, were opposed to intervention.[14] After the war, the Senate did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles, because of a fear that it would pull the U.S. into European affairs which President Washington had warned against. Instead, the country chose to pursue a policy of unilateralism that bordered at times on being isolationist.[15]
An abandoned farm in South Dakota during the Great Depression, 1936.During most of the 1920s, the U.S. enjoyed a period of unbalanced prosperity as farm prices fell and industrial profits grew. A rise in debt and an inflated stock market culminated in a crash in 1929, triggering the Great Depression, which with the New Deal, led to the rise of greater government intervention in the economy.
The nation did not fully recover until 1941, when the U.S. was driven to join the Allies against the Axis after a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese. World War II was the costliest war in American history, but helped to pull the economy out of depression as the required production of military materiel provided much-needed jobs and women entered the workforce in large numbers for the first time.[16]
American Marines Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, by Joe Rosenthal / The Associated PressAfter World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union became superpowers in an era of ideological rivalry dubbed the Cold War. The U.S. represented liberal democracy and capitalism, while the USSR represented communism and a centrally planned economy. The result was a series of proxy wars, including the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the tense nuclear showdown of the Cuban Missile Crisis.
U.S. astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the moon, 1969.The perception that the U.S. was losing the space race spurred government efforts to raise proficiency in mathematics and science in schools[17] and lead to President Kennedy's call for the United States to land "a man on the moon" by the end of the 1960s, which was realized in 1969.[18]
Meanwhile, American society experienced a period of sustained economic expansion. At the same time, discrimination across the U.S., especially in the South, was increasingly challenged by a growing civil-rights movement headed by prominent African Americans such as Martin Luther King, Jr., which led to the abolition of the Jim Crow laws in the South.[19]
After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States continued to involve itself in military action overseas, such as the Gulf War.
Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, U.S. foreign policy focused on the threat of terrorist attacks. In response, the government under George W. Bush began a series of military and legal operations termed the War on Terror, beginning with the overthrow of Afghanistan's Taliban government in October 2001. Soon after, the "War on Terror" continued with the controversial 2003 invasion of Iraq, with support from 30 governments known as 'the coalition of the willing'.
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Government and politics
More information on politics and government of the United States can be found at the Politics and government of the United States series.
The United States CapitolThe United States is the longest-surviving constitutional republic with the oldest written constitution in the world. Its government operates as a representative democracy through a congressional system under a set of powers specified by its Constitution. There are three levels of government: federal, state, and local. Officials at all three levels are either elected by voters in a secret ballot or appointed by other elected officials. Executive and legislative offices are decided by a plurality vote of citizens in their respective districts, with judicial and cabinet-level offices nominated by the Executive and approved by the Legislature. In some states, judicial posts are filled by popular election rather than executive appointment.
The federal government comprises three branches, which are designed to check and balance one another's powers:
Legislative: The Congress, made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Executive: The President, who appoints, with Senate approval, the Cabinet and other officers to help administer federal law.
Judiciary: The Supreme Court and lower federal courts, whose judges are appointed by the President with Senate approval.
The United States Congress is a bicameral legislature. The House of Representatives has 435 members, each representing a congressional district for a two-year term. House seats are apportioned among the states according to population every tenth year. Each state has two Senators, regardless of population, elected to six-year terms; one third of the 100 Senators are elected every second year.
Under the country's federal system, the relationship between the state and national governments is complex; under U.S. law, states are considered sovereign entities. However, the American Civil War and Texas v. White established that states do not have the right to secede, and, under the Constitution, they are not allowed to conduct foreign policy. Federal law overrides state law in the areas in which the federal government is empowered to act; but the powers of the federal government are subject to limits outlined in the Constitution. All powers not granted to the federal government in the Constitution are left to the states or the people themselves. However, the "Necessary and Proper" and "Commerce" clauses of the Constitution legally allow the extension of federal powers into other affairs, though this is the topic of considerable debate over states' rights.
The Constitution contains a dedication to "preserve liberty" with a "Bill of Rights" and other amendments, which guarantee freedom of speech, religion, and the press; the right to a fair trial; the right to keep and bear arms; universal suffrage; and property rights. However, although the United States is committed to the Western ideology to pursue human rights, the extent to which these rights are available in practice is debated: various forms of ethnic discrimination were not legally prohibited until the 1964 Civil Rights Act. However, discrimination is fading with a more tolerant culture and the passage of numerous anti-discrimination laws, embraced by the majority of Americans.
There are two major political parties: the Republican Party and the Democratic Party. The Republicans are generally socially conservative and economically classical-liberals with some right-leaning centrists. The Democrats are generally socially liberal and economically progressive with some left-leaning centrists. Growing numbers of Americans identify with neither party—with some claiming the title Independent and others joining emerging parties, including the Green, Libertarian, and Reform parties. Except for a Democratic plurality in the Senate in 2001–2002[20], the Republican Party has held the majority in both houses of Congress since the 1994 elections; since 2001, the president has been George W. Bush, a Republican.
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Foreign relations and military
Main articles: Foreign relations of the United States and Military of the United States
President of the United States, George W. Bush (right) at Camp David in March 2003, hosting the British Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom. Both countries have dominated world politics.The United States has large economic, political, and military influence on a global scale, which makes its foreign policy a subject of great interest and discussion around the world. Almost all countries have embassies in Washington, D.C., and consulates around the country. However, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Sudan do not have formal diplomatic relations with the United States.[21] The U.S. is a founding member of the United Nations (with a permanent seat on the Security Council), among many other international organizations.
In 1949, in an effort to contain communism during the Cold War, the U.S., Canada, and ten Western European nations formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a mutual-defense alliance in which they have since been joined by 14 other European states—including Turkey, which straddles the Eurasian border, and some former Soviet states. In an example of realpolitik, the U.S. also established diplomatic relations with Communist countries that were antagonistic to the Soviet Union, like the People's Republic of China during the Sino-Soviet split. Recently, the United States has fought against not only terrorism but the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Calls by an overwhelming majority of American citizens continue for increased border security against illegal immigration and the shipment of illegal narcotics, with their primary goal the protection of American interests and the safety of U.S. citizens around the world, against such threats as terrorist infiltration at the border with Mexico.[22]
Supercarriers like the USS Nimitz are a major component of the U.S. system of force projection.The United States has a long-standing tradition of civilian control over military affairs. The Department of Defense administers the United States armed forces, which comprise the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The Coast Guard falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security in peacetime, but is placed under the Department of the Navy in times of war.
The military of the United States comprises 1.4 million personnel on active duty[23], along with several hundred thousand each in the Reserves and the National Guard. Service in the military is voluntary, though conscription may occur in times of war. The U.S. is considered to have the most powerful high-tech military in the world, because it spends a significant amount on traditional-warfare power projection capabilities; for example, American defense expenditures in 2005 were estimated to be greater than the next 14 largest national military budgets combined.[24] However, the U.S. military budget is only about 4% of the country's GDP[25] and, after the military build-up of World War II, has decreased after the winding down of the Cold War.[26] The U.S. maintains over 700 military bases and facilities on every continent except Antarctica.[27]
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States and territories
Main article: Political divisions of the United States
Map of United States, showing state names.[28]The conterminous, or contiguous, forty-eight states—all the states but Alaska and Hawaii—are also called the continental United States. Some include Alaska in the "continental" states, because, although it is separated from the "lower forty-eight" by Canada, it is part of the North American mainland. All of these terms commonly include the District of Columbia. Hawaii, the fiftieth state, is an archipelago in the Pacific Ocean.
The United States also holds several other territories, districts, and possessions, notably the federal district of the District of Columbia—which contains the nation's capital city, Washington—and several overseas insular areas, the most significant of which are American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. Palmyra Atoll is the United States' only incorporated territory; but it is unorganized and uninhabited. In addition, since 1898, the United States Navy has leased an extensive naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
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Ecology
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Geography and climate
Main article: Geography of the United States
A satellite composite image of the contiguous U.S. Deciduous vegetation and grasslands prevail in the east, transitioning to prairies, boreal forests, and the Rocky Mountains in the west, and deserts in the southwest. In the northeast, the coasts of the Great Lakes and Atlantic seaboard host much of the country's population.
Mount Hood, an active volcano in the northwest.The United States is the world's third largest country by land area, after Russia and Canada.[29] It is bounded by the North Atlantic Ocean to the east, the North Pacific Ocean to the west, Mexico to the south, and Canada to the north. Alaska also borders Canada, with the Pacific Ocean to its south and the Arctic Ocean to its north. The island state of Hawaii is situated in the Pacific, southwest of the North American mainland.
The U.S. has an extremely varied geography, particularly in the West. The eastern seaboard has a coastal plain which is widest in the south and almost nonexistent in the north. Beyond the coastal plain, the rolling hills of the piedmont region end at the Appalachian Mountains which rise above 6,000 feet (1,830 m) in North Carolina and New Hampshire. From the west slope of the Appalachians, the Midwestern prairie is relatively flat and is the location of the Great Lakes as well as the Mississippi-Missouri River, the world's fourth longest river system.[30] West of the Mississippi River, the prairie slopes uphill and blends into the vast and oftentimes featureless Great Plains. The abrupt rise of the Rocky Mountains at the western edge of the great plains, extends the entire width of the continental U.S., reaching altitudes over 14,000 feet (4,270 m) in Colorado.[31] In the past, the Rocky Mountains had a higher level of volcanic activity; nowadays, the range only has one area of volcanism, Yellowstone National Park, possibly the world's largest volcano. Dozens of high mountain ranges, salt flats such as the Bonneville Salt Flats, and valleys are found in the Great Basin region located west of the Rockies and east of the Sierra Nevadas, which also has deep chasms, including the Snake River. At the southwestern end of the Great Basin, Death Valley lies below sea level and is the lowest point in the Western Hemisphere and is situated near the Mojave Desert. North of the Great Basin and east of the Cascades in the Northwest is the Columbia River Plateau, a large igneous province caused by one of the largest flood basalts ever to appear on Earth, it is marked by dark black rocks. Near the Four Corners region lies the Colorado Plateau, named after the Colorado River, which flows through it. The Plateau is generally high in elevation, has highly eroded sandstone, and is a blood red in some locations with many national parks, such as Arches, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, and Zion. Immediately to the east of the continental Pacific Coast, the Sierra Nevada mountain range has Mount Whitney, the highest peak in the continental U.S. Along the Pacific coast, the Coast Ranges and the volcanic Cascade Range extend across the width of the country. Alaska has numerous mountain ranges, including Mount McKinley (Denali), the highest peak in North America. Numerous volcanoes can be found throughout the Alexander and Aleutian Islands extending south and west of the Alaskan mainland. The Hawaiian islands are tropical, volcanic islands extending over 1,500 miles (2,400 km), and consisting of six larger islands and another dozen smaller ones that are inhabited.
Wasatch Range, in Utah, part of the Rocky Mountains, next to the Great Salt Lake. Mark Twain described the two as America's Great Wall and Dead Sea.The climate of the U.S. is as varied as its landscape. In northern Alaska, tundra and arctic conditions predominate, and the temperature has fallen as low as minus 80 °F (−62 °C).[32] On the other end of the spectrum, Death Valley, California once reached 134 °F (56.7 °C); the second-highest temperature ever recorded on Earth.[33]
On average, the mountains of the western states receive the most snow and are one of the snowiest places on Earth. The greatest annual snowfall level is at Mount Rainier, in Washington, at 680 inches (1,727.2 cm); the record there was 1,122 inches (2849.8 cm) in the winter of 1971–1972. Other places with significant snowfall outside the Cascade Range are the Wasatch Mountains, near the Great Salt Lake, and the Sierra Nevadas, near Lake Tahoe. In the east, while snowfall does not approach western levels, the region near the Great Lakes and the mountains of the northeast receive the most. Along the northwestern Pacific coast, rainfall is greater than anywhere else in the continental U.S., with Quinault Ranger in Washington having an average of 137.21 inches.[34] Hawaii receives even more, with 460 inches measured annually on Mount Waialeale, in Kauai. The Mojave Desert, in the southwest, is home to the driest locale in the U.S.—Yuma Valley, Arizona, with an average of 2.63 inches of precipitation each year.[35]
In central portions of the U.S., tornadoes are more common than anywhere else on Earth[36] and touch down most commonly in the spring and summer. Deadly and destructive hurricanes occur almost every year along the Atlantic seaboard and the Gulf of Mexico. The Appalachian region and the Midwest experience the worst floods, though virtually no area in the U.S. is immune to flooding. The Southwest has the worst droughts; one is thought to have lasted over 500 years and to have decimated the Anasazi people.[37]
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Flora and fauna
The Bald Eagle is on the Great Seal of the United States. Protection of this once endangered species has helped save it from extinction.The U.S. has over 17,000 identified native plant and tree species, including 5,000 just in California (which is home to both the tallest and the most massive trees in the world).[38] With habitats ranging from tropical to arctic, the flora of the U.S. is the most diverse of any country; yet, thousands of non-native exotic species sometimes adversely affect indigenous plant and animal communities. Over 400 species of mammal, 700 species of bird, 500 species of reptile and amphibian, and 90,000 species of insect have been documented.[39] Many plants and animals are very localized in their distribution, and some are in danger of extinction. The U.S. passed the Endangered Species Act in 1973, to protect native plant and animal species and their habitats.
Conservation has a long history in the U.S.; in 1872, the world's first National Park was established, at Yellowstone. Another 57 national parks and hundreds of other federally managed parks and forests have since been designated.[40] In some parts of the country, wilderness areas have been established to ensure long-term protection of pristine habitats. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service monitors endangered and threatened species and has set aside numerous areas for species- and habitat-preservation. Altogether, the U.S. government owns 1,020,779 square miles (2,643,807 km²) which is 28.8% of the total land area of the U.S.[41] The bulk of this land is protected park and forestland; but some is leased for oil and gas exploration, mining, and cattle ranching.
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Economy
Main articles: Economy of the United States, Science and technology in the United States, Household income in the United States and Transportation in the United States
The economic history of the United States has its roots in the marginally successful colonial economies that progressed to the largest industrial nation in the world by the turn of the 20th Century.
Wall Street, in New York City, represents the status of the U.S. as a major global financial power.The economic system of the United States can be described as a capitalist-mixed economy, in which corporations and other private firms make the majority of microeconomic decisions, and governments prefer to take a smaller role in the domestic economy, although the combined role of all levels of government is relatively large, at 36% of the GDP. The U.S. has a small social safety net, and regulation of businesses is slightly below the average of developed countries.[42] The United States' median household income in 2005 was $43,318.[43]
Economic activity varies greatly across the country. For example, New York City is a center of financial, publishing, broadcasting, and advertising industries, while Los Angeles is the most important center for film and television production. The San Francisco Bay Area and the Pacific Northwest are major centers for technology. The Midwest is known for its reliance on manufacturing and heavy industry, with Detroit serving as the center of the American automotive industry, and Chicago serving as the business and financial capital of the region. The Southeast is a major area for medical research, tourism, and the lumber industry.
A farm near Klingerstown, Pennsylvania. Farming is a major contributor to the American economy.The largest sector in the United States economy is service, which employs roughly three quarters of the work force.[44] The economy is fueled by an abundance in natural resources such as coal, petroleum, and precious metals. However, the country still depends for much of its energy on foreign countries. In agriculture, the country is a top producer of corn, soy beans, rice, and wheat, with the Great Plains labeled as the "breadbasket of the world" for their tremendous agricultural output.[45] The U.S. has a large tourist industry, ranking third in the world,[46] and is also a major exporter in goods such as automobiles, airplanes, steel, weapons, and electronics. Canada accounts for 19% (more than any other nation) of the United States' foreign trade, followed by China, Mexico, and Japan.
While the per capita income of the United States is among the highest in the world, the wealth is comparatively concentrated, with approximately 40% of the population being worse off than most of western Europe and the top 20% being substantially richer.[47] The social mobility of the U.S. is relatively low and has been characterized since 1975 as a "two-tier labor market," in which practically all the income gains have gone to the top 20% of households.[48]
The Space Shuttle Columbia takes off on a manned mission to space.The United States is an influential country in scientific and technological research and the production of innovative technological products. During World War II, the U.S. was the first to develop the atomic bomb, ushering in the atomic age. During the beginnings of the Cold War, the U.S. began successes in space science and technology, leading to a space race, which led to rapid advances in rocketry, weaponry, material science, computers, and many other areas, culminating the first visit of a man to the moon, when Neil Armstrong stepped off of Apollo 11 in July 1969.[49] The U.S. also funded the development of the Internet.
In the sciences, Americans have a large share of Nobel Prizes, especially in the fields of physiology and medicine. The National Institutes of Health, a focal point for biomedical research in the United States, has contributed to the completion of the Human Genome Project.[50] The main governmental organization for aviation and space research is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Major corporations, such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin, also play an important role.
The automobile industry took off early in the United States in comparison with other countries, and much of the nation's transportation development has been centered on the construction of a network of high-capacity highways. From data taken in 2004, there are about 3,981,521 miles (6,407,637 km) of roadways in the U.S., the most in the world.[51]
Despite the popularity of cars, mass transit systems are also available in large cities, such as New York, which operates one of the busiest subway systems in the world. Whereas the freight rail network is one of the best—but also one of the most congested—in the world, the passenger rail network may be considered underdeveloped by European and Japanese standards. The U.S. has more miles of rail than any other nation on Earth.[52]
Air travel is the preferred means of travel for long distances, the busiest airport being Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (as well as being the busiest airport in the world), followed closely by O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. There are also several major seaports in the United States, with the three busiest being the Port of Los Angeles, the Port of Long Beach, and the Port of New York and New Jersey, all three among the world's busiest ports.
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Demographics
Main article: Demographics of the United States
2000 Population Density MapAs of June 2006, there are an estimated 298,967,801 people in the United States, with a population growth rate of about 0.59%.[53] According to Census 2000, about 79 percent of the population lives in urban areas,[54] and the country has 31 ethnic groups with at least one million members each, with numerous others represented in smaller amounts.[55]
The majority of Americans (67.4% in 2004)[56] are the descendants of white European immigrants; this majority, which has been declining since the 1960s (when it peaked at about 90% of the total). If current immigration trends continue, the number of non-Hispanic whites is expected to be reduced to a plurality by 2040-2050. The largest ethnic group of European ancestry is German at 15.2 percent, followed by Irish (10.8%), English (8.7%), Italian (5.6%) and Scandinavian (3.7%). Many immigrants also hail from Slavic countries, such as Poland and Russia, as well as from French Canada.[57] African Americans, or Blacks, largely descend from Africans who arrived as slaves during the seventeenth through ninteenth centuries, and number about 35 million or 12.9% of the population. Indigenous peoples in the United States, such as Native Americans and Inuit, make up only a very small percentage of the total population, with about 35 percent of them living on reservations.[58]
Current demographic trends include the immigration of Hispanics from Latin America into the Southwest, a region that is home to about 60 percent of the 35 million Hispanics in the United States. Immigrants from Mexico make up about 66 percent of the Hispanic community,[59] are second only to the German-descent population in the single-ethnic category. The Hispanic population, which has been growing at an annual rate of about 4.46 percent since the 1990s, is expected to increase significantly in the coming decades, due largely to illegal migration.[60] According to the U.S. Bureau of the Census, the population of the United States will reach 300 million people in October 2006.[61]
The United States has dozens of major cities, which play an important role in U.S. culture, heritage, and economy. In 2004, 251 incorporated places had populations of at least 100,000 and nine had populations greater than 1,000,000, including several important global cities, such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. In addition, there are fifty metropolitan areas with populations over 1,000,000.
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Language
Main article: Languages in the United States
Although the United States has no official language, English is the de facto national language. In 2003, approximately 214.8 million, or 81.6%, of the population aged five years and older spoke only English at home.[1] Although not all Americans speak English, it is the most common language for daily interaction among both native and non-native speakers. Despite the lack of a nationwide official language, knowledge of English is required of immigrants seeking naturalization. Some Americans advocate making English the official language, which it is in twenty-seven individual states. Three states also recognize other languages along with English: French in Louisiana, Hawaiian in Hawaii, and Spanish in New Mexico.[62] Besides English, languages spoken at home by at least one million Americans aged five years and up are Spanish or Spanish Creole, spoken by 29.7 million; Chinese (mostly Mandarin), 2.2 million; French (including Patois and Cajun), 1.4 million; Tagalog, 1.3 million; Vietnamese, 1.1 million; and German, 1.1 million.[63][2]
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Religion
Pisgah Baptist Church in Four Oaks, North Carolina. The Bible Belt is well known for its large devout Christian population.Main article: Religion in the United States
Most Americans identify themselves as Christian, with Protestant denominations making up the majority, estimated at 52 percent, followed by Roman Catholicism (at 24%, the most populous individual sect), the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (1%), Judaism (1%), Islam (1%), other (10%), and none (variously estimated at 10% to 15%).[53] The country is also noteworthy for its relatively high level of religiosity among developed nations. About 46 percent of American adults say that they attend religious services at least once a week, compared with 14 percent of adults in Great Britain, 8 percent in France, and 7 percent in Sweden. Moreover, 58 percent of Americans say they often think about the meaning and purpose of life, compared with 25 percent of the British, 26 percent of the Japanese, and 31 percent of West Germans.[64] However, this rate is not uniform across the country as regular attendance is markedly more common in the Bible Belt, composed largely of Southern and Southern Midwestern states, than in the Northeast or the western United States.[65]
The fastest growing group are those that claim no religion, representing 8% of the population in 1990 and 14% in 2001. The number of those with no religion vary wildly from region to region reaching a high in Washington at 25% and the rest of the relatively agnostic western United States and a low in North Dakota at 3%, followed shortly by the Bible Belt.[66] In the U.S. women are generally more religious than men, at 42% and 31%, respectively, and younger Americans are more secular than their older counterparts, at 14% and 7%, respectively. Among racial and ethnic groups blacks are the most religious while Asians are the least, at 49% and 28%, respectively.[67]
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Education
Main article: Education in the United States
Education in the United States has been a state or local, not federal, responsibility. However, the Department of Education of the federal government exerts some influence through its ability to control funding. Students are generally obliged to attend mandatory schooling in public schools starting with kindergarten, and ending with the 12th grade, which is normally completed at age 18, but many states may allow students to drop out at the age of 16. Besides public schools, parents may also choose to educate their own children at home or to send their children to parochial or private schools. After high school, students may choose to attend universities, either public or private. Public universities receive funding from the federal and state governments, as well as other sources, but most students still have to pay student loans after graduation. Tuition at private universities is generally much higher than at public universities.
America's 19 World Heritage Sites include the University of Virginia, one of many highly regarded public universities supported by taxpayers at the state level of government.There are many competitive institutions of higher education in the United States, both private and public. The United States has 168 universities in the world's top 500, 17 of which are in the top 20.[68] There are also many smaller universities and liberal arts colleges, and local community colleges of varying quality across the country with open admission policies.
The United States has a low literacy rate as compared to other developed countries, with a reading literacy rate at 86-98% of the population over age 15,[69] while ranking below average in science and mathematics.[70]
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Health
Main article: Health care in the United States
The World Health Organization ranks the United States' health level 72nd among the world's nations.[71] Infant mortality is 5 per 1,000; among developed nations, only Latvia ranks worse, at 6 per 1,000. [72] Obesity is also a public-health problem, which is estimated to cost tens of billions of dollars every year.[73].
Unlike most Western governments, the U.S. government does not guarantee publicly funded health care to its citizens, leading to a notably high number of people suffering from lack of proper healthcare. Private charities and insurance play a huge role in covering health care costs. Health insurance in the United States is traditionally a benefit of employment, which is mandated by law in many cases. Also, emergency care facilities are required to provide service regardless of the patient's ability to pay. Medical bills are overwhelmingly the most common reason for personal bankruptcy in the United States.[74] However, the country spends a notable amount on research through such federal agencies as the National Institutes of Health.[75]
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Culture
Main article: Culture of the United States
American cultural icons, such as apple pie, baseball, and the American flag.The culture of the United States is rooted in its origin as British colonies, but has been strongly influenced by subsequent waves of immigration, first from Europe and Africa and later from all over the world. Overall, the most significant culural influences came from northern Europe, especially from the German, English and Irish cultures.[63]
One model of American culture has been that of being a melting pot in which immigrants eventually assimilate into American culture bringing contributions from their culture but ultimately adopting a unified American culture. A more recently proposed model is that of the salad bowl in which immigrant cultures retain at least some of the unique characteristics of their culture without merging into the overall American culture.[76] Modern sociologists tend to view pluralism, rather than assimilation, as a goal for American society, largely disregarding the idea of the melting pot.[63]
A key component of American culture is the American Dream, a faith, held by many in the United States, that, through hard work, courage, and self-determination, regardless of social class, a person can gain a better life.[77] This belief is rooted in the belief that the country is a "city upon a hill, a light unto the nations,"[78] which were values held by many early European settlers and maintained by subsequent generations.
American cuisine, embraces native American ingredients like turkey, potatoes, corn, and squash which have become integral parts of American culture. Such popular icons as apple pies, pizza, and hamburgers are all derived from European dishes. Burritos and tacos have their origins in Mexico. However, many of the food items now enjoyed worldwide either originated in the United States or were substantially altered by American chefs.
Music in the United States also traces to the country's melting-pot population through a diverse array of styles. Rock and roll, hip hop, country, blues, and jazz are among the country's most internationally renowned genres. Since the late 19th century, popular recorded music from the United States has become increasingly known across the world, such that some forms of American popular music are heard almost everywhere.[79]
Mickey Mouse has become an American icon .However, not all American culture is derived from some other form found elsewhere in the world. For example, the birth of cinema, as well as its radical development, can largely be traced back to the United States. In 1878, the first recorded instance of sequential photographs capturing and reproducing motion was Eadweard Muybridge's series of a running horse, which the British-born photographer produced in Palo Alto, California, using a row of still cameras. Since then, the American film industry, centered in Hollywood, California, has had a profound effect on cinema across the world. Other areas of development include the comic book and Disney's animated films, which saw widespread popularity and influence, especially in Japanese anime and manga (the popularity of which has tranformed them from an obscure art into a global phenomenon), as well as Chinese animation and manhua.
Pro Bowl, 2006. American Football is the most popular spectator sport in the United States.[80]Sports are a national pastime, and playing sports, especially American football, baseball, and basketball, is very popular at the high-school level. Professional sports in the U.S. is big business, with most of the world's most highly paid athletes.[81] The "Big Four" sports are baseball, football, ice hockey, and basketball. Baseball is popularly termed "the national pastime"; but, since the early 1990s, football has largely been considered the most popular sport in America.
Another popular sport is auto racing, especially NASCAR. Lacrosse, originally played by some of the indigenous tribes, is a visible sport and growing. Soccer (called football in many other parts of the world) is a popular participatory sport, especially among children; but it does not have a large following as a spectator sport, in contrast to its much greater popularity in other countries. But, in recent years, the national league, Major League Soccer, has seen a rise in popularity and internationally famous players within the league. The United States is among the most influential regions in shaping three popular board-based recreational sports—surfboarding, skateboarding, and snowboarding—which have many competitions and a large, dedicated subculture. Eight Olympiads have taken place in the United States. The country generally fares very well in them, especially the Summer Olympics: for instance, in the 2004 Olympics, the U.S. topped the medals table, with a record 103 medals (35 gold, 39 silver, and 29 bronze).[82]
See also: Arts and entertainment in the United States, Media of the United States, Dance of the United States, Architecture of the United States, Holidays of the United States, and Lists of Americans
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Rape is a crime where the victim is forced into sexual activity, in particular sexual penetration, against his or her will through use of physical force, threat of injury, or other duress. It is also considered rape if the victim is unable to say "no" to intercourse, due to the effects of drugs or alcohol. The word originates from the Latin verb rapere: to seize or take by force. The Latin term for the act of rape itself is raptus.
Contents [hide]
1 Definitions of rape
2 Rape and human rights
3 Sociobiological analysis of rape
4 The role of control and loss of privacy in rape
5 Quotes
6 References
7 See also
8 Further reading
8.1 Academic and reference books
8.2 Others
9 External links
9.1 Research resources on sexual assault and rape
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Definitions of rape
Rape is, in most jurisdictions, a crime defined as sexual intercourse or penetration without valid consent by both parties. In some jurisdictions, rape is defined by penetration of the anus or the vagina by a penis, while in other jurisdictions, the penetration of either the vagina or the anus need not be by a penis, but can be by other objects such as a finger or a dildo. Some jurisdictions expand the definition of rape further to include other sexual acts without valid consent, including oral copulation and masturbation. The lack of valid consent does not necessarily mean that the victim explicitly refused to give consent; generally, where consent was obtained by physical force, threat of injury, or other duress, or where consent was given by a person whose age was below the age of consent, a person who was intoxicated by drugs or alcohol, or a person who was mentally impaired by illness or developmental disability, the consent is considered invalid. (When the sexual activity involved a person whose age was below the age of consent, the crime defined is often known as "statutory rape," although a number of jurisdictions use terms such as "unlawful sexual intercourse" to avoid the forcible connotation of the word "rape.")
In some circumstances consent to sexual intercourse may be implied. For example in most Western countries until recently a woman was assumed to have given full consent on marriage to sexual intercourse with her husband, thus making it impossible for a husband to be guilty of raping his wife.
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Rape and human rights
Probably for much of human history, rape, violence, and war have often occurred in connection with one another. In the twentieth century, the use of rape as a "weapon of war" has been well documented and addressed by NGOs as well as the United Nations, [1] and national governments.
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Sociobiological analysis of rape
Main article: Sociobiological theories of rape
Some animals appear to exhibit behaviors which resemble rape in humans, in particular combining sexual intercourse with violent assault, such as are observed in ducks, geese, and certain species of dolphins. It is difficult to determine to what extent the idea of rape can be extended to intercourse in animal species, as the defining attribute of rape in humans is the lack of informed consent, which is difficult to determine in animals. (Also see: Non-human animal sexuality)
Some sociobiologists argue that our ability to understand rape, and thereby prevent and treat it, is severely compromised because its basis in human evolution has been ignored. They argue that rape, as a reproductive strategy, is encountered in many instances in the animal kingdom, including among the great apes, and presumably also among early humans. Some studies indicate that it is an evolutionary strategy for certain males who lack the ability to persuade the female by non-violent means to pass on their genes. (Thornhill & Thornhill, 1983). Such sociobiological theories, regarding rape as adaptive, are highly controversial, and are not accepted by all mainstream scientists.
Camille Paglia and some sociobiologists have argued that victim-blaming should not be totally dismissed in all cases, since some sociological models suggest that it may be genetically-inbuilt for a certain proportion of men and women to act in ways which would tend to raise the chances of rape occurring, and that this may be a biological feature of the species. This, however, is a very controversial view. A contrasting view, given by Lewis Thomas in his "The Lives of a Cell: Notes of a biology watcher", claims that rape is not only not an evolutionary benefit to the rapist, but that it is strongly maladaptive, and therefore selected against. Others dismiss Lewis Thomas' conclusion, by pointing out that what is maladaptive in one place and time, may be adaptive in another place and time. For example, in certain animal groups females only voluntarily mate with alpha males. In such an environment, non-alpha males are able to pass on their genes by impregnating females without their consent. Clearly, in animals with this behavior, the genes of non-alpha males who don't participate in this strategy are lost forever, while the genes of non-alpha males who do participate in this strategy are passed on.
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The role of control and loss of privacy in rape
Rape has been regarded as "a crime of violence and control" since the 1970s. According to psychological analysis literature, "control" is a key feature in most definitions of privacy:
"Privacy is not the absence of other people from one's presence, but the control over the contact one has with them." (Pedersen, D. 1997).
"Selective control of access to the self." (Margulis, 2003)
Control is important in providing:
what we need for normal psychological functioning;
stable interpersonal relationships; and
personal development. (Pedersen, D. 1997)
Violation of privacy or "control" come in many forms, with sexual assault and the resulting psychological traumas being one of the most explicit forms. Many sexual assault survivors suffer from eating disorders, such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia, which also center around control issues. In some ways, therefore, it makes more sense to look at the issue of sexual assault as an invasion of privacy:
"The more comfortable a person is with talking about invasion of privacy and in insisting that he or she has privacy that deserves respect, the clearer that person’s understanding of rape will be…" (Mclean, D. 1995)
Consequently, it is important to be aware of the approach of this subject of rape through the concept of privacy because of the historical background and the need to bypass certain stigmas.
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Quotes
See quotes relating to rape
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References
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See also
Causes of Rape
Child molestation
Rape on college campuses
Aggression
Femicide
Incest
Sexual assault
Sexual harassment
Sydney gang rapes
trafficking in human beings
rape culture
rape pornography
Violence against women
anti-rape female condom
rape (word)
history of rape
laws about rape
types of rape
rape by gender
effects of rape and aftermath
some aspects of rape
rape and punishment
rapists
Rape reporting
There is an ongoing problem with sexual assault in the U.S. military which has resulted in a series of scandals which have received extensive media coverage.
Tailhook scandal
Assaults on trainees at Aberdeen, MD, 1996
Air Force Academy sexual assault scandal
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Further reading
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Academic and reference books
Reference books
Smith, M. D. (2004). Encyclopedia of Rape. USA: Greenwood Press.
Macdonals, John (1993). World Book Encyclopedia. United States of America: World Book Inc.
Kahn, Ada. (1992). The A-Z of women's sexuality : a concise encyclopedia. Alameda, Calif.: Hunter House.
The Columbia encyclopedia. Sixth edition, 2001-04.
Leonard, Arthur S. (1993). Sexuality and the law : an encyclopedia of major legal cases. New York : Garland Pub
Kazdin, Alan E. (2000). Encyclopedia of psychology. Washington, D.C. : American Psychological Association ; Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press
Sedney, Mary Anne, "rape (crime)." Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia. Scholastic Library Publishing, 2006
Kittleson, M., Harper, J., & Hilgenkamp, K. (2005). The Truth About Rape. USA: Facts on File
Secondary victimization and victim blame
Lamb, Sharon, The Trouble with Blame: Victims, Perpetrators and Responsibility, Harvard Univ Press, 1999.
Madigan, L. and Gamble, N. (1991). The Second Rape: Society's Continued Betrayal of the Victim. New York: Lexington Books.
Murray JD, Spadafore JA, McIntosh WD. (2005) Belief in a just world and social perception: evidence for automatic activation. J Soc Psychol. Feb;145(1):35-47.
Frese, B., Moya, M., & Megius, J. L. (2004). Social Perception of Rape: How Rape Myth Acceptance Modulates the Influence of Situational Factors. Journal-of-Interpersonal-Violence, 19(2), 143-161.
Pauwels, B. (2002). Blaming the victim of rape: The culpable control model perspective. Dissertation-Abstracts-International:-Section-B:-The-Sciences-and-Engineering, 63(5-B)
Blumberg, M. & Lester, D. (1991). High school and college students' attitudes toward rape. Adolescence, 26(103), 727-729.
Shaver, . (2002). Attribution of rape blame as a function of victim gender and sexuality, and perceived similarity to the victim. Journal of Homosexuality, 43(2)
Anderson , K. J. & Accomando, C. (1999). Madcap Misogyny and Romanticized Victim-Blaming: Discourses of Stalking in There's Something About Mary. Women & Language, 1, 24-28.
The effect of participant sex, victim dress, and traditional attitudes on causal judgments for marital rape victims. (Author Abstract). Mark A. Whatley. Journal of Family Violence 20.3 (June 2005): p191(10).
Kay, Aaron C., Jost, John T. & Young, Sean (2005) Victim Derogation and Victim Enhancement as Alternate Routes to System Justification. Psychological Science 16 (3), 240-246.
Self blame
Tangney, June Price and Dearing, Ronda L., Shame and Guilt, The Guilford Press, 2002
Matsushita-Arao, Yoshiko. (1997). Self-blame and depression among forcible rape survivors. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering. 57(9-B). pp. 5925.
Branscombe, Nyla R.; Wohl, Michael J. A.; Owen, Susan; Allison, Julie A.; N'gbala, Ahogni. (2003). Counterfactual Thinking, Blame Assignment, and Well-Being in Rape Victims. Basic & Applied Social Psychology, 25 (4). p265, 9p.
Frazier, Patricia A.; Mortensen, Heather; Steward, Jason. (2005). Coping Strategies as Mediators of the Relations Among Perceived Control and Distress in Sexual Assault Survivors. Journal of Counseling Psychology, Jul2005, Vol. 52 Issue 3, p267-278
Causes of multiple victimization
Follette et. al., (1996). Cumulative trauma: the impact of child sexual abuse, adult sexual assault, and spouse abuse. J Trauma Stress.9(1):25-35.
Sarkar, N. N.; Sarkar, Rina, (2005). Sexual Assault on a Woman: Its Impact on Her Life and Living in Society. Sexual & Relationship Therapy. 20 (4), 407-419
Parillo, K., Robert C. Freeman, & Paul Young. (2003) Association Between Child Sexual Abuse and Sexual Revictimization in Adulthood Among Women Sex Partners of Injection Drug Users. Violence and Victims. 18(4): 473-484.
Shields, N. & Hanneke, C. (1988). Multiple Sexual Victimization: The Case of Incest and Marital Rape. In G. Hotaling, D. Finkelhor, J. Kirkpatrick, & M. Strauss (Eds), Family abuse and its consequences: New directions in research. (pp. 255-269). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Sorenson SB, Siegel JM, Golding JM, Stein JA. (1991). Repeated sexual victimization.
Violence Vict. Winter;6(4):299-308.
Male survivors
Dorais, Michel, Don't Tell: The Sexual Abuse of Boys, McGill-Queen Univ Press, 2002.
Mezey, Gillian, and King, Michael, Male Victims of Sexual Assault, Oxford, 2000.
Theories
Anderson, Peter and Struckman-Johnson Cindy, Sexually Aggressive Women: Current Perspectives and Controversies, Guilford, 1998.
Harris, Grant, et al, The Causes of Rape: Understanding Individual Differences in Male Propensity for Sexual Aggression, American Psychological Association, 2005.
"Psychosexual Disorders." Section 15, Chapter 192 in The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy , edited by Mark H. Beers, MD, and Robert Berkow, MD. Whitehouse Station, NJ: Merck Research Laboratories, 2002.
Brownmiller, Susan: Against Our Will : Men, Women, and Rape, Ballantine Books, 1975.
Gavey, Nicola, Just Sex: The Cultural Scaffolding of Rape, Routledge, 2005.
Scruton, Roger, Sexual Desire: A Moral Philoshopy of the Erotic, Free, 1986.
Ellis, Lee, Theories of Rape: Inquiries Into the Causes of Rape, Hemisphere, 1989.
McDonald, John, Rape: Controversial Issues: Criminal Profiles, Date Rape, False Reports, and False Memories, Charles C Thomas, 1995.
Cothran, Helen, Sexual Violence: Opposing Viewpoints, Thompson Gale, 2003.
Holmes, Ronald and Steven, Current Perspectives on Sex Crimes, Sage, 2002.
Emilie Buchwald, Pamela Fletcher, Martha Roth (ed.), Transforming a Rape Culture, Milkweed Editions, 2005.
Kanin, Eugene J. (1994). False Rape Allegations. Archives of Sexual Behavior.
Sarah Projansky, Watching Rape: Film and Television in Postfeminist Culture, New York University Press 2001
Thornhill, Randy and Palmer, Craig T. A Natural History of Rape: Biological Bases of Sexual Coercion. MIT Press, 2001.
Roussel, D.E. and R. Bolen. (2000). The Epidemic of Rape and Child Sexual Abuse in the United States. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Mclean, D. (1995). Privacy and its invasion. CT: Praeger.
Margulis, Stephen T., (2003). Privacy as a social issue and behavioral concept. Journal of social issues 59(2):243-261
Pedersen, DM (1997) Psychological functions of privacy. Journal Of Environmental Psychology, 17:147-156
Child rape and child sexual assault
Levesque, Roger, Sexual Abuse of Children, Indiana Univ Press, 1999.
Pryor, Douglass, W. Unspeakable Acts: Why Men Sexually Abuse Children, New York University Press, 1996.
Female Sex Offenders
Pearson, Patricia, When She Was Bad: Violent Women and the Myth of Innocence, Viking Adult, 1997.
Adams, Ken, Silently Seduced: When Parents Make their Children Partners-Understanding Covert Incest, HCI, 1991.
Anderson, Peter B., and Struckman-Johnson Cindy, Sexually Aggressive Women: Current Perspectives and Controversies, Guilford, 1998.
Kierski, Werner, Female Violence: Can We Therapists Face Up to it?, Counseling and Psychotherapy Journal, 12/2002.
Rosencrans, Bobbie, The Last Secret: Daughters Sexually Abused by Mothers, Safer Society, 1997.
Miletski, Hani, Mother-Son Incest: The Unthinkable Broken Taboo, Safer Society, 1999.
Elliot, Michelle, Female Sexual Abuse of Children, Guilford, 1994
Hislop, Julia, Female Sex Offenders: What Therapists, Law Enforcement and Child Protective Services Need to Know, Issues Press, 2001.
Non-human rape
Gowaty, P.A. and N. Buschhaus. (1997). Functions of aggressive and forced copulations in birds: female resistance and the CODE hypothesis. American Zoologist (in press)
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Others
McElroy, Wendy, Sexual Correctness: The Gender-Feminist Attack on Women, McFarland, 2001.
Gavin de Becker. The Gift of Fear. ISBN 0440226198, (recognising and handling dangerous people and situations)
Doe, Jane. The Real Story of Jane Doe. Toronto: Random House, 2003.
Ghiglieri, Michael P. (1999). The Dark Side of Man: Tracing the Origins of Violence. USA: Perseus Books.
Alice Sebold Lucky: A Memoir ([2002]) ISBN 0316096199 (author recounts her own rape at the age of 18)
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External links
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Research resources on sexual assault and rape
RAINN - The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network
Rape Crisis Information Pathfinder - Find journal articles, statistics and online resources on rape and sexual assault. Includes male survivor information
AARDVARC: An Abuse, Rape, and Domestic Violence Aid and Resource Collection - includes male survivor information
National Criminal Justice Reference Service article database
Sexual Violence Facts from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
The History of Rape: A Bibliography
Male Survivor: Overcoming Sexual Victimization of Boys and Men
MenWeb: Male Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse
Sexual Violence Research Initiative
Dispatches from the Front Lines- current events articles
Statistics on sexual violence and reporting
Rape and Sexual Assault Statistics from Government Sources
US Department of Justice: Incident-Based Statistics (new, non-uniform and incomplete)
FBI's Uniform Crime Reports (non-uniform sources and discriminates against male rape victims)
Probability statistics compiled by NCPA from US Department of Justice statistics
Group Says FBI Report Overlooks Prison Rape Statistics
Child Sexual Abuse, Real and Unreal
Issues: Statistics are not always accurate or cited properly
Rape statistics not crystal clear
Definitions of rape and sexual assault
Encyclopedias, Dictionaries and Reference Books on Rape and Sexual Assault
Message boards for rape survivors
A directory of message boards for rape survivors
Pandora's Aquarium - Message board for victims of sexual assault which has a male survivor forum
After Silence - Message board for survivors of rape and sexual abuse
Beneath My Facade - a message board for survivors of rape, sexual abuse, domestic abuse & dissociative identity disorder
Support group for male survivors from Hope for Healing (a faith based group)
Male Survivor has a support board
Support forum for people conceived by rape
Marital/Intimate partner rape links
Aphrodite Wounded
About.com Marital Rape
"Just Keeping the Peace" 2004 Study on Intimate Partner Rape
National Clearinghouse on Marital and Date Rape
StopVAW Intimate Partner Sexual Assault Page
Hidden Hurt
For better or worse: the case of marital rape
Non-stereotypical sexual assault
Our Endangered Species; A Hard Look at How We Treat Children
Double Standard: The Bias Against Male Victims of Sexual Abuse
The Incest Loophole
Abuse Cases Face Double Standard
Sexual Assault of Children by Females
Bullying in the Family
Articles on Sexual Abuse Steoreotypes
Female-female rape links
Mother-Daughter Sexual Abuse: A Painful Topic
Lesbian Sexual Assault, Rape and LGBTQ Domestic Violence
LGBTQ DV hotline is 1-617-423-7233 and the Gay & Lesbian National Hotline is 1-888-THE-GLNH
The Survivor Project
The Northwest Network
Gay resources from aardvarc
Female-Female Abuse
Male-male and female-male rape links
Inside the Mind of a Female Sex Offender
Take Care of Your Mother - Or Else
Revenge: A Dish Best Served Cold
Male Survivor - Overcoming Sexual Victimization Of Boys and Men
Male Sexual Abuse Victims of Female Perpetrators: Society's Betrayal of Boys
Female Sexual Offenders
Female Sex Offenders
Male sexual assault survivors
LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer)
LGBTQ and lesbian sexual assault resources
Victim blame
Victim Blame: A Bibliography
"The Legal Bias Against Rape Victims (The Rape of Mr. Smith)" - excerpt from an April 1975 American Bar Association Journal article
Secondary victimization
Hate crimes against RTS disability
False Rape Allegations by Dr. Eugene Kanin
Findlaw article on false rape allegations
Self blame
Self blame research
Politics of rape
The New Mythology of Rape: Politicizing Women's Pain
Sexual assault awareness raising for victim's rights
The Invisible Community
Women's week activities - awareness raising
The Vagina Monologues
The White Ribbon Campaign
Male Responsibility For Rape And Rape Awareness
Reversal of Fortune: The Rape of Men By Women
Emerging and controversial research topics
Eroticized Rage and Other Sexualized Feelings
Women Who Rape
Articles on Female Sexual Offenders
Sibling Sexual Abuse: An Emerging Awareness of an Ignored Childhood Trauma
Drink spiking - a reality or urban myth?
Research on the link between eating disorders and sexual assault
Drugs and alcohol in rape
NIDA InfoFacts: Rohypnol and GHB - NIDA website.
NCJRS
Findlaw - intoxication and the legal definition of rape.
Beyond 'drink spiking': drug and alcohol facilitated sexual assault, November 2003, Briefing from the Australian Institute of Family Studies
DEA
Drink-spike victims had one too many Australian study finding the vast majority of "drink spike" victims were actually only heavily intoxicated or under the influence of drugs taken voluntarily (not GHB).
Miscellaneous
Cultural Diversity
Stop Prisoner Rape
Police and law enforcement training manuals for sexual assault, rape and domestic violence
College and fraternity rape
British Sexual Offences Act 2003
BBC - Sex trade's reliance on forced labour
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape"