Marital rape wasn’t even considered a real thing until 1993 in the US. It was an “expectation” of the marriage that the wife always be “available” for the husband. It didn’t make it not rape, and it took us until as recently as 31 years ago to figure that out.
In other words, marital rape was mostly still legal when I was born. In some areas, it’s still treated differently than non-married rape.
Prior to the 1970s, marital rape was legal in every US state. It was partially outlawed in Michigan and Delaware in 1974, then wholly outlawed in South Dakota and Nebraska in 1975. The court case Oregon v. Rideout in 1978 was the first in which someone stood trial for raping his spouse while they lived together. By 1993, marital rape was a crime nationwide. Still, in the 1990s, most states continued to differentiate between the way marital rape and non-marital rape were viewed and treated. The laws have continued to change and evolve, with most states reforming their laws in the 21st century. However, there are still states where marital rape and non-marital rape are treated quite differently under the law.
Anyway, just agreeing with your point and showing an even more glaring and recent example.
Marital rape wasn’t even considered a real thing until 1993 in the US. It was an “expectation” of the marriage that the wife always be “available” for the husband. It didn’t make it not rape, and it took us until as recently as 31 years ago to figure that out.
In other words, marital rape was mostly still legal when I was born. In some areas, it’s still treated differently than non-married rape.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marital_rape_in_the_United_States
Anyway, just agreeing with your point and showing an even more glaring and recent example.