Its easy to blame a backward-moving culture thats hostile to women, but rapid transformation is also part of the story. Enjoying the freedoms of the new India, many of its citizens have left traditional village life, but they have not found a new set of ethics in urban areas. When the accused go unpunished or justice takes forever to be delivered, it makes rape a way of life for Indian men. I am one of those Westerners amused by Indias rapid growth and expanding social mobility. I lived in New Delhi while reporting on the country from 2002 to 2007, when there were hundreds of documented incidents of sexual violence in the capital. Delhi accounted for one-quarter of all rapes recorded in India in 2011. When I lived there, Indian women regularly urged me to move elsewhere— anywhere!—calling Delhi 'Indias rape capital' and telling me terrifying stories of how unsafe the city was. Of course, most Delhi residents dont have the option to leave, nor do they want to. The citys population has swelled with migrants from Indias poor rural areas. For them, Delhi represents opportunity. About 350 million Indians now live in cities, and an additional 250 million are expected to move to urban areas in the next two decades. Call centers and the hospitality sector in the capital have created jobs for even the slightly educated, making the middle-class dream seem more attainable than ever. However, Indias rural migrants do not find the education and work opportunities they expect in cities. Poverty, low social status and gender still prevent many from advancing. The parents of the 23-year-old rape victim, who died a week ago, had moved the family to a middle-class New Delhi neighborhood from a poor village. This family, having sold land to help send her to college, had placed hopes in her, who had urged her two younger brothers to follow her to college. Having recently qualified as a trainee physiotherapist in a private Delhi hospital, she landed herself in a solidly middle-class profession. It makes sense that this attack happened in Delhi, which appears to welcome modern women who go to college and work outside the home. They are vulnerable to sexual harassment or violence. But the city is not nearly as open as advertised. Because it is filled with rural migrants who speak dozens of languages and represent every class and religion, the city seems conflicted about what is acceptable. Sexual violence is flourishing in New Delhi for the following reasons EXCEPT______.