Every year, more than one hundred and sixty thousand American women are raped. Every year, nearly three thousand rapes are reported a result of the growing problem identified as date rape. The popular drug Rohypnol, commonly referred to as Roofies, has lead to this popular "new way of rape" in which Rohypnol is mixed into a women's drink eventually causing her to pass out allowing a male to assault her. But what is it that has made this drug and its use so popular among young people today?.
The inability to obtain convictions because of the lack of evidence surrounding the use of the date rape drug, such as the victim's unavailability to testify as to what happened, only encourages the use of date rape drugs. Under the rational choice theory, the male often sees the results of using the date rape drug as much greater than the consequences for the likeliness of his conviction is slim. If the victim cannot remember, and the courts do not convict, there is no incentive not to use the drug. There is an encouragement to increase use of the drug because the chances of conviction are lessened. Date rape can often be seen as a victimless crime where the women often fails to report it because she has no memory of the events during her unconsciousness. This act of deviance is clearly a consensus crime as all types of rapes are. .
One obvious cause of rape can be viewed from the motivational theory where the amount of sexual frustration among society leads to more rapes. Men have a high sex drive and are intimately aggressive and often resort to rape to satisfy their sex drive. There is a feminist perspective on date rape that holds it, as well as rape in general, is the product of a mans traditional dominance over women. The conflict theory can be applied in which the women is powerless against the all powerful male while under the effects of the drug, thus leading to her rape. Overall, the lessened chances of getting caught using the date rape drug makes it a popular and growing problem among today's society.
