Louise O'Neill's documentary 'Asking For It' aired last night on RTE2 which took a look at the issue of consent and the rise in sexual assault in Irish society today. The award winning author examined how the justice system deals with these cases both at home and abroad as well as addressing the lack of education for young people about the rules of engagement around sex.
The Reality Bites programme received huge praise on Twitter for confronting an issue that so many have had their head in the sand about, as she pointed out the startling statistics that show that four in every ten Irish women have been the victim of some kind of sexual assault. One in ten of those victims actually report the crime and only 7% of those cases lead to conviction. It's also emerged that 20% of those that seek help from the rape crisis centre are men.
It makes for depressing reading but Louise O'Neill didn't hold back on shining a glaring light on the issue, talking to legal experts, victims, and guidance counsellors in a documentary that, as quite a few Twitter users pointed out, should now become compulsory viewing in all secondary schools.
Kids should learn about consent, and learn that their bodies are their own, at the same time they learn the alphabet. #AskingForIt
— Donal O'Keeffe (@Donal_OKeeffe) November 1, 2016
Brilliant work by @oneilllo handling a tough topic so well. #AskingForIt should be screened in schools.
— Louise Duffy (@louiseduffyshow) November 1, 2016
Can we show this in all secondary schools, please? #AskingForIt
— Linnea Dunne (@linneadunne) November 1, 2016
#AskingForIt is a phenomenal documentary. Thanks for opening the eyes of the nation @oneilllo @RTE2. I hope changes come from it.
— Pippa (@pippadoyle92) November 1, 2016
COULD GENUINELY CRY BECAUSE SOMEONE IN IRELAND IS FINALLY TALKING ABOUT THIS ON TELLY!!! #AskingForIt
— Elaine (@LeanIago) November 1, 2016
#AskingForIt was superb, let's hope this kicks off a conversation about consent and sexual violence in this country
— The Galway Player (@GalwayPlayer) November 1, 2016
well put @oneilllo:
'yes it's not all men but it's enough men. Men have to be part of the solution'#askingforit— Ruairí McKiernan (@ruairimckiernan) November 1, 2016
That's how you make a documentary. Well done @oneilllo #AskingForIt
— Maïa Dunphy (@MaiaDunphy) November 1, 2016