Speaking with the Sunday Times, Chrissie Hynde recalled the time she was forced to perform sexual acts on a biker gang member under threat of violence. She was 21 at the time. She then told the Times the incident was her own fault:
“Technically speaking, however you want to look at it, this was all my doing and I take full responsibility. You can’t f*** about with people, especially people who wear ‘I Heart Rape’ and ‘On Your Knees’ badges … those motorcycle gangs, that’s what they do.
“You can’t paint yourself into a corner and then say whose brush is this? You have to take responsibility. I mean, I was naive.â€
She went on:
“If I’m walking around in my underwear and I’m drunk? Who else’s fault can it be?… If I’m walking around and I’m very modestly dressed and I’m keeping to myself and someone attacks me, then I’d say that’s his fault. But if I’m being very lairy and putting it about and being provocative, then you are enticing someone who’s already unhinged – don’t do that. Come on! That’s just common sense. You know, if you don’t want to entice a rapist, don’t wear high heels so you can’t run from him. “If you’re wearing something that says ‘Come and f*** me’, you’d better be good on your feet … I don’t think I’m saying anything controversial am I?â€
As The Guardian notes, Hynde’s comments, as you probably expected, are not going over very well with everyone. Lucy Hastings, director of the charity Victim Support, responded, “Victims of sexual violence should never feel or be made to feel that they were responsible for the appalling crime they suffered — regardless of circumstances or factors which may have made them particularly vulnerable… They should not blame themselves or be blamed for failing to prevent an attack — often they will have been targeted by predatory offenders who are responsible for their actions.â€