Finding the words to write this article was difficult for me. The anger and frustration that I feel when thinking about the Stanford rape case, or any rape case for that matter, is too much to even describe.
There are many angles I could take in this article. I could write about the way the media handles rape. The fact that a straight, white, college athlete was excused from the punishment he deserves. I could write about the endless victim blaming that has been taking place throughout the case, or the fact that alcohol is apparently at fault instead of the person who committed this crime.
Perhaps one of the most notable and poignant parts of this case is the letter that the victim read to her attacker.
She deserves praise for her courage. She gave a voice to those who were unable to face their attackers. She gave hope to those who felt they could not speak up, or could not face the courts.
Her letter is a testament to the endless victim blaming that occurs when someone is raped. Her letter is a testament to the privilege that allowed a criminal to get away with a heinous and unforgiveable crime simply because his daddy wrote him a letter and he had a “future.”
What about the survivor’s future?
What about the trauma the survivor has to endure? The nights she spent awake? The hours she lost at work?
Why does Brock Turner get a slap on the wrist because he can swim a few laps? Why does his yearbook photo get plastered all over the Internet, rather than the mug shot that most criminals get associated with?
Why does the media spend time listing Turner’s accolades, rather than listing his crime? Why is he still heralded, but the two Swedish men on bikes who stopped him from raping an unconscious woman barely even get a mention in the media?
Turner can simply turn his crime into a silly “mistake.” He can say that he consumed alcohol and raped someone who was unconscious, who could not give her consent, who was not even awake, and suddenly everyone excuses him.
If he could recognize that she was drunk, why could he not recognize that she could not say no? If he could recognize he had too much to drink, why could he not recognize what he did was wrong? If he was able to run from the Swedes and they had to physically tackle him to stop him, how is he suddenly innocent?
Why does Brock Turner get to be treated like he is the victim when he was the attacked? The unanimous jury that found him guilty is not attacking him. He did something unspeakable, and he deserves the punishment that follows.
There are many lessons we can take away from this case. We can learn that bystander intervention training works. We can learn that the media lacks an ability to tell both sides of the story. We can learn that rape is not a topic to be taken lightly, and that consuming alcohol is not an excuse.
And most importantly, we can learn that survivors deserve a voice. There are people willing to listen and to accept these voices, and we need to create an environment that allows this so that more survivors feel comfortable speaking out and sharing their voice.
