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This article deals with topics of abuse and sexual assault, which may be disturbing to some readers.

What does it mean to be the perfect victim? Is there such a person?

A so-called perfect victim is somebody who gives an impression of absolute blamelessness in the aftermath of an abusive action because of their level of respectability, vulnerability and believability. For these reasons, you are more likely to accept their accusations as honest and truthful. What this perception does is place focus on the victims instead of on the offenders, where it actually should lie.

In reality, there is no such thing as a perfect victim. Public opinion and prejudice cause this illusion and do more to create resistance for those not “fitting the mold” to get the justice they deserve. 

Who is a “Perfect” Victim?

You’ll best understand who constitutes a perfect victim through examples that indicate the dangers of forming perceptions based on specific victim predispositions. 

Young, White and Middle Class

Two plaintiffs in abuse cases are a well-dressed young caucasian lady with a good job and a clear criminal record and an older disadvantaged woman of color with a history of misdemeanors. The first plaintiff will likely find more favor in a courtroom and via public opinion than the latter, who has to create an enhanced degree of respectability to receive similar levels of justice. 

Quite unjustly, the first plaintiff automatically receives more empathy and favor in court than the second, which is too often the situation concerning race, age, class, and life differences. This bias does not mean that the younger, more privileged victim is any more worthy of understanding and fair treatment in a courtroom, but because of these factors, the younger, more privileged victim makes a more “perfect” victim.

Clever and Well-Spoken

A plaintiff giving testimony in a sexual assault case could be an articulate, qualified woman with high societal standing or, conversely, a lower-class, intellectually disabled member of society with no social standing to speak of. Those viewing and judging the case will likely view the first person as a perfect victim compared to a woman with a disability. 

Although women with intellectual disabilities get subjected to sexual assault 50% to 90% more regularly compared to other members of society, these others have the courts believe them more often. Intellectually disabled people generally carry less credibility in courtroom scenarios. Whereas the courts should regard victims’ ordeals on their merits instead of the impressions they glean, the truth is that some are deemed “more worthy” of belief than others. 

Demure and Cooperative

Authorities rescue two young girls from different backgrounds from sex traffickers. Both are traumatized, but one is shy and respectfully volunteers information to her rescuers. The other is demonstrative and unwilling to cooperate. As a result, without consideration for their upbringing, the courts and the public view the first victim as more “perfect” than the second.

Traffickers enforce their will on their victims to the degree that the victim’s submission means better treatment in context and a greater chance of survival. Their methods of control foster environments that either bend victims to their will or trigger behavioral and mental patterns that may cause a victim to be labeled as “difficult” after rescue. Both girls experienced untold trauma during their time in captivity and built the best coping mechanisms they could. Neither is a perfect victim and deserves more support and empathy than the other. 

The Perfect Victim Illusion

The above examples show that public perception and innate societal bias form the foundation of the perfect victim illusion. An illusion is all it is. Victims of sexual abuse are never perfect. They lodge criminal cases or civil suits based on circumstances they’ve endured — all of which have enough foundation to warrant court dates. From there, the court must establish the facts and arrive at a verdict of guilty or not guilty against or in favor of the defendant — the defendant, not the victim.

The plaintiff is not on trial and should never be, and you should not dispute any presented facts because the victim stating them is not deemed perfect — in looks, actions,  speech or background — and neither should the court. You’re likely aware of the impending high-profile sexual harassment civil case that actress Blake Lively has brought against fellow actor and director in their joint movie “It Ends with Us,” Justin Baldoni.

Blake Lively vs. Justin Baldoni

Should there ever have been a personification of the perfect victim, you’ll agree Blake Lively fitted the bill. The tall, blonde Hollywood sweetheart married to the ideal man, Ryan Reynolds, had the acting world at her feet, having appeared in the smash TV series “Gossip Girl” and Tinseltown hits “The Age of Adaline” and “The Town,” among others. 

After releasing her movie “It Ends With Us,” about domestic violence, Lively used her press tour to promote her haircare range, drew some criticism and created distance between herself and the film’s male lead and director, Justin Baldoni. When news of Baldoni’s alleged inappropriate sexual behavior toward Lively on the movie’s set hit the press, there was widespread outrage against the director, with most of the film’s ensemble unfollowing him on social media. 

However, more stories, old video clips, and news of Baldoni’s defamation countersuit have gone viral as time passed. Many of these paint Lively in a less-than-perfect light, meaning that the once-perfect victim may find herself facing a more difficult courtroom scenario when the case begins next March.

You know you should never preemptively judge a victim, and while Lively and Baldoni have both undergone judgment in the court of public opinion, it’s up to the court to decide whether the actress’s alleged ordeal merits a guilty verdict against her co-star. Whatever the result, the current trial in the media proves that a perfect victim doesn’t exist. While respectability, vulnerability and believability may create empathetic public perceptions, an unknown victim of abusive lovebombing may realistically be more worthy of the status.

No Victim is Perfect

While preconceived ideas and views of victims may cause positive or negative impressions of those in the public eye, spare a thought for the invisible victims who undergo levels of bias from juries in courtrooms because of who they are and not how their abusers criminally treated them. These imperfect victims face more resistance because of their perceived imperfections. In fact, they’re no less perfect than those who’ve undergone similar crimes but have better social standing.

The only thing making any victim “perfect” is the perception of others. It’s only an illusion.