Many do not understand the true meaning behind statutory rape. The law comes into play with so many factors that it would take a book to recognize them all. The legal definition of statutory rape is “sexual intercourse by an adult with a person under the age of 12 years established by law” (Hill). The law was initially written to say that only a woman could be the victim of statutory rape, but was later revised so that both sexes could be victims. But if you really think about it, is that a true statement? Can a man and a woman both be victims of statutory rape? Can both a man and a woman be perpetrators of this crime? The opinion of some says that only a woman can be raped. Many of them also say the classic phrase that everyone always says: "If he has an erection, then he must have wanted it, so it wouldn't be rape." Well, would this be true for a five-year-old who has been sexually abused? Someone who doesn't understand why or how this is happening to their body? Most people also don't understand that to be convicted of statutory rape, the victim does not have to give consent or not. Just for one simple reason, when the person is so young, i.e. under 12 years old, they cannot legally give consent. Whether “yes” or “no” was a contributing factor to the sexual act, they still had sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 12, so it is illegal. Why does consensus make a difference? For a simple reason that most wouldn't think of and that's the story behind it all. Statutory rape laws are divided not only along gender but also across racial lines. Black women were not protected by statutory rape laws because they were seen as products and not people (Ultius). Many... middle of paper... d male, was charged with statutory rape in California and now claims the state statute unconstitutionally discriminates against only men. But one thing some people don't know about federal law is that a state can only punish men to equate deterrents to teen pregnancy. He claims that, at the time of the crime, he was 17 years old and had had sexual intercourse with a 16-year-old woman. And because of the California statute that only criminalizes males when they act this way, and that the woman was not charged with any crime, even though she was as guilty as him. Michael M now argues that this disparity in statutory rape laws violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution (Michael M v. Sonoma County Superior Court).