Problem Solved? Drinkware That Can Detect the Presence of Date-Rape Drugs

According to recent statistics, a sexual assault occurs in the U.S. every two minutes. It's a barbaric experience, one that's made all the more insidious since the introduction of "date-rape" drugs, which grant perpetrators easy access to potential targets. But a new product set to hit the market in the coming year hopes to prevent drug-induced sexual assault by alerting bar patrons and party-goers when their drinks have been spiked.

DrinkSavvy is a startup whose goal is to manufacture drinkware that changes color when it comes in contact with commonly-used date-rape drugs. The company's founder, Mike Abramson, says the idea for the product came to him after his own drink was spiked in a Boston nightclub.

Though the color-changing technology is ready for market, the product line is not quite there, so this month the company launched its own IndieGogo fund with the hopes of initiating its first round of manufacturing.

The goal is to sell these products to college campuses and bars. Abramson also promises to make the products available free of charge to rape crisis prevention centers.

MORE: Quick Study: For Victims of Sexual Assault, Symptoms May Be Overlooked

It's important to note that DrinkSavvy doesn't detect all drugs; ecstasy, LSD and even Ambien are often used to render potential victims powerless, but won't illicit a change in the cups' color.

Still, it can be one method of protection, but the product is raising some questions about how our culture addresses the needs of potential victims. Much like often repeated advice, "Don't wear a short skirt," critics says it places an unfair responsibility on potential targets to prevent rape, instead of placing it on perpetrators not to rape in the first place.

Brooke Axtell is a writer and advocate for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, and a member of the speaker's bureau for Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network (RAINN). In her interview with TakePart, she says "Ultimately, the burden of responsibility should never fall on the victim. If widely distributed, the technology could provide a significant safety measure, but in a cultural climate of rampant victim-blaming it is important not to turn this into one more way that sexual assault survivors are shamed. A victim is not assaulted because they dont have the proper drink ware. A victim is assaulted because someone chooses to rape with or without the presence of drugs."

The hope is for DrinkSavvy to serve as a method of empowerment for the people who use it, but until greater attention is placed upon perpetrators' accountability, the issue of rape will remain a frequent means of victimization.

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Problem Solved? Drinkware That Can Detect the Presence of Date-Rape Drugs