This post originally appeared on The Good Men Project.
My brother,
I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt.
I'm not sure you deserve it, and a lot of people are going to give me hell for it, but I'm going to try. Because when you wrote the email "Luring your Rapebait" to your Georgia Tech fraternity brothers at ΦKT, you touched on something much bigger than yourself.
You touched on a problem we see in masculinity and party culture on every single college campus.
It's ironic. In the email you expressed the exact cognitive dissonance that I see with college men I work with all over the United States: You explicitly said, "NO RAPING." Yet everything you described encourages rape!
So it makes me wonder: Have we sent you that many messed-up messages about sex, consent, rape, "blurred lines," partying, and alcohol that you don't actually know what is and isn't rape?
Have we, as the men in your life, taught you that many terrible messages about masculinity that you honestly think this is how men are supposed to act in order to get laid?
Have we sent you that many messed-up messages about your own self-worth and the personhood of women that you think it's actually normal and acceptable to refer to women as rapebait (or any other terrible, objectifying term) when you think you're only talking to your brothers?
If the answer to any of these questions could even possibly be a "yes," then I have a responsibility as your brother to offer you some perspective.
Again, I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt, and despite what your letter tells me, I am going to assume that you don't actually want to rape anyone -- if not because you value the personhood and autonomy of your sexual partners then because you don't want to be expelled, go to jail, and register as a sex offender for the rest of your life.
♦◊♦
So let me throw out an absolutely crazy idea: If you actually want to "get laid," and you want your sex to be in any way better than a sloppy drunk encounter that may actually be sexually assault, forget about your 7 E's of Hooking Up.
Instead, consider the 7 A's of Hooking Up:
Ask - See someone at the party that you're interested in? Ask her a bit about herself (or him about himself -- no need for heteronormativity here, but I will use the female pronoun since your letter seemed pretty focused on female "rapebait"). Get to know her a bit. And do so genuinely. I promise -- should your night end with a hookup, your sex will be a hell of a lot better if you've talked and felt out the chemistry.
Ask - Ask your newfound friend if they'd like to come with you to go get a drink. Don't offer to get a drink for her, as there are some really messed up people out there (of which you're not one, right?) who would drop something in someone's drink. If she doesn't want a drink, no need for "aww, that's no fun" -- sometimes sober sex is the best sex.
Ask - Ask her if she'd like to dance. If she doesn't, see if she'd like to play a game like bags or just hang out and talk some more. If she does want to dance, don't do that creepy "rub your penis against their ass" B.S. that you described. I promise that showing off your ability to actually dance is going to a lot further in impressing her than grinding against her like a dog in heat. Then, if you want to grind a bit, ask! A simple, "Is this alright?" can suffice. Also, don't just run your hands all over her body without her permission. Check in. I promise, asking is sexy.
Ask - As the night progresses, if you have some chemistry and are getting along, ask her if she'd be interested in leaving with you. If she's not, respect that. If she is, great! Just don't assume that means you're getting laid.
Ask - Ask where she'd like to go -- her place? Your place? Out on a date another time when you're both more sober and can appreciate each other's company a bit more?
Ask - If it looks like you might hook up, make sure you check in along the way. Ask if you can kiss her. Ask if you can remove your clothing or hers. Ask. I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Consent doesn't have to be plastic and boring. The single sexiest thing someone can hear is, "Tell me what you want." Not sure how to make asking sexy? Check out this article.
Ask - So you've hooked up. Maybe that means you just made out all night. Maybe you had oral or you "went all the way" (whatever that means). Rather than being a creep ("Expunge, send them out of your room and on their way out when you are finished"), consider this: Sex gets better over time with every single partner. The more you know each other's bodies, the more you and your partner will know what will make for mind-blowing pleasure. Ask what they'd like in the future. Be honest, and let her be honest. Not really feeling something long-term? Say so. Really like her and want to pursue a relationship, or at least a date or two? Communicate that. And respect what she wants.
Follow the 7 A's of Hooking Up, and I promise your sex will be better and you and your partner will have a much better night. Oh, and you won't rape anyone.
One last thing: If you're interested in throwing parties where every person has an amazing time, where those who want to hook up can meet someone, and where sexual violence is not the end result, let's have a conversation about sex-positive party culture.
I want to see you and all of my brothers and sisters have the kind of amazing, mind-blowing, sex-positive experiences that are possible if we leave behind this toxic, rapebait bullshit.
In Sex Positivity,
Jamie