Anyone who owns a TV or has access to the internet will most likely be familiar with one controversial man; Brock Turner. Now if you don't know who this man is, I suggest you open another tab and do whatever googling you must do to educate yourself on the subject. As this article is not meant to summarize the atrocious rape he committed against an unconscious, non-consenting young woman on Stanford's campus; but rather to dissect the more implicit issues at hand. Primarily this article is in response to the desperately entitled and nefarious letter Turner's father wrote in defense of his short-sighted and over privileged son. The letter is linked here.
Okay, where does a writer even start when picking apart the absurdity of this letter. Well, how about the fact that Brock's father wrote it. A man who a) will not be able to write an unbiased letter and b) is now obnoxiously trying to cover up for his son's disgusting behavior like a mother would do when her toddler colors on a wall. This over entitled father would rather excuse his son's behavior than hold him accountable. He notes that because Brock is a fantastic swimmer he should be excused from his crimes, saying "many years of competitive swimming...has been a major reason for his ability to cope over the last 15 months" of the investigation and trial. So what are you saying Mr. Turner? That since he has mastered the backstroke he is excusable of raping an innocent and unconscious woman??? I find this thinking to be extremely vapid and inconsiderate, however I suppose the crime in it of itself was extremely inconsiderate.
Brock's father goes on to explain how hard his son has worked to be accepted not only as an athlete but a student at Stanford University. Even with all his extensively listed achievements he apparently could not adjust socially and reportedly "broke down and told [his family] how much he was struggling to fit in socially and [that] he did not like being so far from home". I completely understand the strain a new social arena can cause a student to endure, however this is not a good excuse for rape... NOTHING IS. This man was not held at gunpoint, he was under no influence to commit such a crime other than his own, and the help of the large consumption of alcohol that his father allegedly believes is the real reason he came to be in such a situation. His father even goes on to blame the older members on the swim team claiming his drinking habits were "modeled by many of the upperclassmen on the swim team and played a role in the events of Jan 17th and 18th 2015". To me this is an outrageous statement. What Mr. Turner is failing to take into account is that the vast majority of college students experiment or indulge in the consumption of alcohol, and in no way shape or form does that mean that it is okay for them to take advantage of an intoxicated and unconscious woman. A woman who could not defend herself to any degree. Using the mistake of drinking alcohol as a scapegoat for your son's rape is like saying it's not someone's fault for injuring or killing people in a motor vehicle accident because they were texting and driving. As if somehow their former mistake excuses their graver offense.
In his final paragraph, Mr. Dan Turner attempts to depict the sad and cumbersome life Brock is now plagued to live. A life where he "will never be his happy go lucky self with [an] easy going personality and welcoming smile. His every waking minute is consumed with worry, anxiety, fear, and depression". You know who else's life is consumed with worry, anxiety, fear and depression? The woman your son raped. The woman your son never came to know personally but physically. The woman who now must walk through her life feeling as though her body is no longer hers. You invaded her mind, her body and her life forever. Your son may have apparently lost his welcoming smile and happy demeanor, but the woman whom your son illegally engaged with now bears the weight of possibly never smiling again. She will likely feel anxious or panicked at the touch of another man, even if his touch is invited. She will have to look in the mirror every morning and not recognize the woman looking back at her. She will remember the way your son left her in that alley way, striped of her clothes and her self esteem. Waking up and having to piece together a nightmare that will persist years from now. Dan, you may feel like your son's life is falling apart but when he destroyed his future he took this young woman down with him too.
Dan Turner goes on to belly ache over his son's lack of appetite, even when offered his favorite foods. Well you know what makes me lose my appetite? The fact that you think it acceptable for your son to climb out of this horrible mess with no real earth shattering consequences. I lose my appetite thinking about the years of psychological damage you have caused this woman, and that you don't seem to think your son should pay for his wrong doings? I think otherwise.
Mr. Turner as the wonderful world of the internet has made me aware you yourself have a daughter, do you not? Her name is Caroline, and I believe she is 19 years old? How would you react if some poor, innocent, drunk college swimmer raped her? How would you feel if someone violated the body and mind of your own daughter? Would you want them to serve a mere six months?? It seems as though you feel your son, being an over achieving white male should be excused from having to pay the price for his actions. However, if the roles were reversed and Caroline was the one telling the judge and jury that she had been taken advantage of and that now powerful attorneys and people with money were going to try and invalidate the fact that she had been raped; would that change your mind Mr. Turner?
The most disturbing element of this already tragic story is that not only is this young woman having to cope with the relentless ramifications of being raped, she is now being told it is truly her fault and that she is partially to blame for the crime committed against her. It is revolting to think that not only was this woman stripped of her body and self-esteem but now her voice as well. Brock had taken complete control of the script. Since she was unconscious and has no memory of the incident she apparently has no right to claim it was not consensual. Apparently being unconscious and unresponsive is not a big enough indicator that Brock's actions were unwanted and unlawful.
How did it come to this? For God sake the woman was found behind a dumpster! What consenting woman would allow a man to have sex with her in the back of an alley? A woman who was so intoxicated she fell to the ground, prompting the sexual activity to commence. This is truly disgusting and in no way should have been twisted in a way that worked as defense for Brock's actions.
As the victim stated "assault is not an accident". Mr. Turner you need to realize what your son did was not a culmination of bad events, but a wrong decision he chose to make! The victim is exactly as she is labeled A VICTIM, of your son's heinous and horrifying actions. Being a good student, an impressive athlete, a lover of rib-eye stake, an underage drinker and a socially uncomfortable college student is not what you are being tried for. You are being tried for the rape you committed. The assault you committed on a woman whom you promptly abandoned in an unsafe and unsanitary alley where no one could protect and help her.
Now as anyone can see there are many faults in this picture. A lot of stress and strain has been placed on this woman and it no doubt has had a dramatic impact on her life. The severe impact that the judge at Brock's trial had when he deemed a sentence longer than six months "too much" for him to endure, and thus granted him his extremely lenient consequence. This is offensive and I hope everyone who hears this story or reads this article understands how low our standards have become. We need to fight for woman who have been stripped of their voices. People like Brock Turner, who cannot even acknowledge or admit the horrors they have created must be held accountable; and people like Dan Turner need to accept this fact and refrain from writing letters fraught with pity and unreasonable explanations for such behavior.
Our society needs to realize and enforce the thought that assault is not an accident no matter what college you attend, how much money your father has or how fast you can swim.
