What Is Consent?

Consent means the person is actively ready to get intimate with another person. Consent let’s the other person know is you are fine with whatever is happening. If anything happens without consent then that is considered as sexual assault or rape. It is actually sad that people need to look up meanings and definitions for something as simple as respecting another person’s wishes and dignity. It should be natural for a person to know to respect another person’s wish when they object to something.

University of Michigan Policy & Procedures on Student Sexual and Gender-Based Misconduct and Other Forms of Interpersonal Violence​ defines consent as "a clear and unambiguous agreement, expressed outwardly through mutually understandable words or actions, to engage in a particular activity."

Consent must be given by a person through their own free will and not through emotional, physical, psychological, financial or any other form of persuasion or coercion. Consent is something that can be withdrawn later if the person feels uncomfortable in something that they are indulging themselves in. If a person consents to one sexual activity or had consented in the past to previous sexual activities, it does not mean they have consented for the future sexual endeavours or to other sexual activities.

The sole purpose of asking for consenting is respecting the partner’s emotions and their dignity. It is the sole responsibility of the person who initiates the sexual activities to ask for consent and then proceed with the activity.

What are all not free passes?

There are no free passes when it comes to consent. There is no way out, and everybody included in the activity should have consented to the activity and be there because they want to and not because they were forced to be present there.

Consent or a ‘yes’ should not be assumed because of:

1.Body Language, Appearance or the other Non-Verbal Communication methods: A person’s dress, their language or the way they walk should not and does not mean they have consented for the sexual activity.

2.Dating history or previous sexual activities: Just because the person has dated many people and has had intercourse with many people, it does not mean that there is automatic consent with that person.

3.Marriage: A few vows do not give anybody the right to use a person whenever they want for their own sexual gratifications.

4.Previous sexual activity: It does not mean that they have consented for life if they have consented once for the sexual activities.

5.Silence, passivity, lack of resistance or immobility: A person’s silence to constant advances does not mean they want to have a sexual encounter, a person who stays like a rock in their place while not feeding the other person with the idea, clearly means that they do not want to engage in any kind of sexual activities.

6.Incapacitation: When a person is drunk or high or both, it means that the other person with them is supposed to make sure they reached home safe and then leave without taking advantage of the situation.

Consent is important and without consent the whole incident becomes a sexual assault case or a rape case. Consent is important because only then are you respecting your partner’s wishes and their dignity. Asking for consent while in the mood does not necessarily reduce the sexual urge and if your personal sexual urge is much more important than another person’s self-respect and self-worth then God has given you hands, then feed your own demonic urges.