Dear Men,
We need your help. Women have been throwing the bullshit flag on excuses on why rape happens. The latest excuse was alcohol, promiscuity, and my favorite was “it wasn’t a violent crime”. I understand people use the “if it was your daughter, sister, mom, wife, girlfriend” thing and wonder how you would feel. So I’ve decided to say, “what if it was you or your son that was raped”? Would you be screaming from the roof top to stop this insanity? Does it change the importance when the violent crime is against a male? Is it more violent? Would things change that the victim isn’t to blame and the punishment should fit the crime?
Gentlemen, women have been fighting this battle for a long time. Yes, many stand by us to voice how wrong rape is, but it’s not enough to change the world. We need more of you to stand up and say it has to stop. You have to help us explain consent and what is not ok. We need more men making sure women are ok instead of staying silent. Rape hurts women, it hurts men, it hurts children. It can ruin the victim’s life forever. After rape, you feel worthless, can’t stand to look at yourself, and can’t even come forward because there is so much finger pointing that it was your fault you were raped, that you deserved it because of what you wore, that you asked for it, that you were unconscious and somehow said “yes, this is a good idea…go for it”.
We have a situation that just happened. The Stanford Trial where Brock Turner only got 6 months in jail for raping an unconscious woman behind a dumpster. I can speak for women, none of us want to have sex behind a dumpster, so I’m pretty sure she didn’t agree to this even if she had been conscious. How can we as a nation, not protect people who are violated?
Women are blamed for their own rapes with common reasons such as: she wanted it, dressed like a whore, she enjoys sex (God forbid a woman enjoys sex) so I took it without her saying it was ok, she was asking for it, she didn’t say no (but she was unconscious or drugged), and the reasons go on for days. We have all heard them, but it is time to say NOPE we are done with this now. People’s lives are more important than this. More important than “20 minutes of action” as Brock’s father so eloquently put in his letter to the judge and stated that 6 months was too sever for this act. (eye roll)
We can stand together as human beings and say enough is enough. We can stand together and change the rape culture. We can stand together as humans and let Rapists, Judges, Lawyers, Politicians, and the world know we are done with this culture and we are ready for it to be punished like the crime it truly is.
So men, please help us fight this fight. The victims are worth so much more than they get from our legal system. They need to feel us standing in their corner as they overcome one of the most tragic things that will happen in their life time.
Whether the victim is a man or a woman, they are victims and their world changed. None of them got a say in that. It was decided for them. Their voice was taken from them by their rapist, but ours is not. Ours can make a difference.