Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Suffolk University Law Review

Abstract

Throughout the law, it is a familiar problem that there can be a large gap between the law in the books and the law in action. In the area of rape law, that gap is really more of a chasm. That is probably our most important problem. But here I want to focus on a different part of the problem; one that is a bit more esoteric but also may ultimately be more fundamental. That is, many very serious abuses still are not covered by the law at all. Many unambiguous abuses are not covered, even in theory. This topic requires me to move beyond the most egregious, brutal kinds of abuse that all of us are most concerned about. I will be moving to the edges, to things that are not as bad. In a sense the kinds of abuse I will mention might not be the highest priority for some reformers. But it is crucial to focus on these edges because there is a Twilight Zone where sex is unwanted, but not illegal. The existence of this Twilight Zone feeds back into a lot of the cultural attitudes that create the barriers to effective law reform. I am going to give you six examples.

First Page

415

Volume

38

Publication Date

2005

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