In my culture,
we don’t talk about sex.
We imply it or shush it
or hush it.
We even pretend,
in a country of 1.2 billion
like it doesn’t ever happen.
In my culture,
the word rape is heard more
than the word sex.
Why is that?
Because sex is consent and
rape is not
but in my culture, to some,
consent
is a wild thought.
In my culture,
some people still
want to be married
to a virgin girl
because they like brand new.
And a broken hymen is
just bad news.
In my culture,
you can be judged
for red lips and
a short skirt
because they can arouse
a ‘harmless’ flirt.
This culture of mine
is yours too.
This rape culture
is slut-shaming.
It is claiming
that no means yes.
It is denying
that it can happen
to men.
This rape culture is not
one nation;
it is a societal creation.
And when have we
escaped
that
without
extreme tribulation?