The Brock Turner sexual assault case has been all over the news lately. And I think I share the same feelings as most women when I say that the whole ordeal pisses me off.
In all of this madness, I’ve been left with a serious question: why do I know Brock Turner’s name? It’s an easy answer; well, he’s the guy who raped an unconscious woman outside a Stanford fraternity house. But that’s not quite what I mean.
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When I ask Why do I know Brock Turner’s name, my point is that we have villainized someone to a place of notoriety, like Al Capone or Dr. Kevorkian. We as a society has spoken his name so much that he is now the story, not so much his crime and the victim.
That being said, I understand wholeheartedly why the victim has kept her name private. I support that, if that’s what makes her comfortable. But everywhere I go Brock’s name is either being spoken or is in a headline. To be honest, I’m sick of hearing and seeing this guy’s name everywhere because I think it negates the point.
I am glad that as a culture we’re talking about rape and sexual assault, and I’m glad it’s a big conversation. However, I’m frustrated that, largely, our conversation discusses the villain. This is a problem because it might glamorize him, in a sense. But it also takes away from the real problem, which is how rape and sexual assault is both perceived by boys and handled in court.
I think the media has been very caught up in the letters read in court. The victim’s letter was moving and powerful and important. But then it was met with a letter from the criminal’s father, which never once mentioned the victim. It discussed how broken up the Turner family has become and how their rapist son has been feeling bad about the violent crime he committed. But it lacked any sort of empathy for the victim and the trauma his son caused her. Then came Brock’s letter, which seemed to blame drinking for raping the woman. The problem is alcohol never raped anyone, but people have.
My whole point with this article is that the more we circulate Brock’s name and mugshot around, the more we focus on the perpetrator. We don’t discuss what women who have been raped go through and what we as a society are going to do to change that, for the most part. I want to be clear that these things are being discussed somewhat, but not nearly as much as the rapist and his credentials are.
Point blank: Brock is a bad guy, undoubtedly. But we need to stop wasting our breath on him. What matters in this case is that the victim’s voice (and voices of all sexual assault victims she may represent) is heard, justice is actually served and we stop making excuses for criminals. I don’t care that the rapist was a 20-year-old collegiate swimmer. Just because he’s an athlete doesn’t mean he’s above the law or above respecting his peers.
