'Listen and believe' actually hurts rape victims in the long run

It’s one thing for activists and support groups to believe everyone that comes to them with a story of rape. It’s their job to offer support, and it’s not necessary for them to be incredulous. Could this lead to them getting taken advantage of occasionally? Sure, but for them, it’s better to help everyone who seeks assistance than to turn into investigators.

But for the media and police, believing everyone isn’t a good idea, and in the long run it can hurt real victims. That’s certainly not to say the media and police should automatically distrust those making accusations, but the burden falls on them to investigate and verify (or else falsify) those accusations.