Rape Culture

[Alexander II]

Warning: the links and discussion below may contain graphic imagery not suitable for children under 18 without parental approval. They may also contain discussion of Rape and other forms of violence.

These articles give the backstory. The victims letter to her assaulter is lengthy, but I have read the entire thing and I can tell you that it is worth taking the time to read and reflect on it.

Stanford Case summary: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brock_Turner

Victims letter to her assaulter : https://www.buzzfeed.com/katiejmbaker/heres-the-powerful-letter-the-stanford-victim-read-to-her-ra?utm_term=.mqGPx60bK#.ig5ka5gLE

Rapists letter to the judge(article): http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jun/07/brock-turner-statement-stanford-rape-case-campus-culture

Father of rapist's letter to the judge: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/2852614-Letter-from-Brock-Turner-s-Father.html#document/p3/a300156

What do you think of rape culture worldwide? 

I want to warn everyone that any comments that are in bad taste about the victim, the rapist or anyone in this community will be removed. I want to encourage a introspective discussion about society. If I remove a comment of yours you believe is not justified, please pm me and we can discuss it. Tomorrow, when the new poll of the day is posted, I will move the discussion to the paelaenium. Thank you for your thoughtful, mature discussion.

 

[Best Korea]

"thoughtful, mature discussion"

He didn't get convicted of actual rape, just 3 counts of sexual assault. He probably should have gotten at least 6 months each instead of just the 1 sentence of 6 months, 3 with early parole. Also, even if he isn't going to jail for very long his life is fucked. He lost his scholarships, got kicked out of university, and will be on the sex offender list for the rest of his life. I say in 3-5 years he'll get convicted of raping someone else. If he doesn't get killed in prison.

 

[japan77]

Here is my general stance on this specific case. Best Korea, in the US, by definition of law, sexual assault basically equals rape, however they are different degree felonies. Basically, he was still convicted of rape, but a lower grade version. For committing 3 felonies, he definitely should have gotten much more jail time. However, beyond banning him from certain jobs, I feel the current US justice system is messed up. Once you have served your time and proven you are no longer a threat to society, I think people should be reinstated to society with near-full rights, with obvious exceptions to be allowed to conduct certain jobs and having to stay away a certain distance from certain buildings to avoid having repeat offenders. This is because I feel that many people deserve second chances, but no more than that, so I support much more extreme penalties for repeat offenders vs single-time offenders. In this case, as he is convicted on 3 counts, and as such is a repeat offender already, I would actually be in favor of giving him the Life sentence.

 

[Rin]

3 counts was basically the same thing. So it was one rape that broke 3 laws.

It's not a "lesser rape". I don't believe in giving people lower sentences just because they're smart people who need to be in school or whatever. A lot of the people who destroy the world are smart people.

What's worse is that this guy doesn't seem remorseful at all. People should be in jail for long enough to rehabilitate them, not as some kind of punishment or deterrent. It's likely someone like this will get away with white collar crime in the future or find some other way to sexually harrass people within the law.

The problem with weak sentences like this is that people don't forgive and forget after they leave prison. They get ostracized and can't get jobs. They are forced into crime and become really good criminals.

 

[M'ilord🎯]

Rape=bad

no discussion here.

 

[Alexander II]

First of all, I want to thank those who have contributed for their thoughtful comments.

I hope that a lot of you took the time to read her letter as I think it offers a lens through which too many people are forced to see the world and I hope that we can all learn a lot from what she had to say.

Rape=bad

no discussion here.

I agree with you Milord that rape is bad, but the question is how strictly should a rapist be punished. In this case, it is widely agreed upon that the sentence given was far too light and there is a recall effort as the judge who presided over this case is an elected official. In this specific case, the maximum sentence that he faced was 14 years in a federal penitentiary. How long do we as a society think that it takes someone to learn from their mistakes?

3 counts was basically the same thing. So it was one rape that broke 3 laws.

It's not a "lesser rape". I don't believe in giving people lower sentences just because they're smart people who need to be in school or whatever. A lot of the people who destroy the world are smart people.

What's worse is that this guy doesn't seem remorseful at all. People should be in jail for long enough to rehabilitate them, not as some kind of punishment or deterrent. It's likely someone like this will get away with white collar crime in the future or find some other way to sexually harrass people within the law.

The problem with weak sentences like this is that people don't forgive and forget after they leave prison. They get ostracized and can't get jobs. They are forced into crime and become really good criminals.

Here is my general stance on this specific case. Best Korea, in the US, by definition of law, sexual assault basically equals rape, however they are different degree felonies. Basically, he was still convicted of rape, but a lower grade version. For committing 3 felonies, he definitely should have gotten much more jail time. However, beyond banning him from certain jobs, I feel the current US justice system is messed up. Once you have served your time and proven you are no longer a threat to society, I think people should be reinstated to society with near-full rights, with obvious exceptions to be allowed to conduct certain jobs and having to stay away a certain distance from certain buildings to avoid having repeat offenders. This is because I feel that many people deserve second chances, but no more than that, so I support much more extreme penalties for repeat offenders vs single-time offenders. In this case, as he is convicted on 3 counts, and as such is a repeat offender already, I would actually be in favor of giving him the Life sentence.

I agree reed with both of you that the US legal system focuses too much on punishment rather than rehabilitation and I think that the majority of time spent in prison should be spent either rehabilitating, reflecting, or repaying your debt to society rather than what it currently is which is rotting away until you are put outside of the gates with all of your dignity and chances at a good life stripped. I think that the sentence should have been the maximum with a chance for parole after 5 years as life in prison seems far too stick a penalty for the crime he committed. I am not a legal expert, but that is my feeling. I also think that it should show up when a company is hiring you that you were a felon, but they should also get access to your sentence and behavior while in prison as not all felons are equal. Additionally, I agree with Rin that the worst part of this story I the complete lack of remorse or consideration shown for the victim by the rapist and his father. I certainly think that Brock made a lot of bad choices which he should be punished for, but I think it is more important that he gains a glimpse into the way that he completely destroyed an innocent girls life and learns how to help others prevent it from happening. As I said, to me, the three rs a person should do in prison are reflect, rehabilitate, and repay. While there are some crimes that these three cannot begin to cover, if we focused on providing prisoners opportunities to do these three and made it easy for them to reintegrate back into society, I think we would be much better off.

 

[M'ilord🎯]

First of all, I want to thank those who have contributed for their thoughtful comments.

I hope that a lot of you took the time to read her letter as I think it offers a lens through which too many people are forced to see the world and I hope that we can all learn a lot from what she had to say.

I agree with you Milord that rape is bad, but the question is how strictly should a rapist be punished. In this case, it is widely agreed upon that the sentence given was far too light and there is a recall effort as the judge who presided over this case is an elected official. In this specific case, the maximum sentence that he faced was 14 years in a federal penitentiary. How long do we as a society think that it takes someone to learn from their mistakes?

I agree reed with both of you that the US legal system focuses too much on punishment rather than rehabilitation and I think that the majority of time spent in prison should be spent either rehabilitating, reflecting, or repaying your debt to society rather than what it currently is which is rotting away until you are put outside of the gates with all of your dignity and chances at a good life stripped. I think that the sentence should have been the maximum with a chance for parole after 5 years as life in prison seems far too stick a penalty for the crime he committed. I am not a legal expert, but that is my feeling. I also think that it should show up when a company is hiring you that you were a felon, but they should also get access to your sentence and behavior while in prison as not all felons are equal. Additionally, I agree with Rin that the worst part of this story I the complete lack of remorse or consideration shown for the victim by the rapist and his father. I certainly think that Brock made a lot of bad choices which he should be punished for, but I think it is more important that he gains a glimpse into the way that he completely destroyed an innocent girls life and learns how to help others prevent it from happening. As I said, to me, the three rs a person should do in prison are reflect, rehabilitate, and repay. While there are some crimes that these three cannot begin to cover, if we focused on providing prisoners opportunities to do these three and made it easy for them to reintegrate back into society, I think we would be much better off.

Life makes the person , the happenings in his/her life makes the person , so most persons like this who are beyond saving should have more punishment, but prisons are useless they need some kind o rehabilitation school prison who teachs them what their fathers could not, because if you isolate the sick persons in an other group of sick persons it doesn't make them healthy ,it only makes them more sick.

 

[Ernsters]

Unfortunately, after reading the defendant’s report, I am severely disappointed and feel that he has failed to exhibit sincere remorse or responsibility for his conduct. I fully respected his right to a trial, but even after twelve jurors unanimously convicted him guilty of three felonies, all he has admitted to doing is ingesting alcohol. Someone who cannot take full accountability for his actions does not deserve a mitigating sentence. It is deeply offensive that he would try and dilute rape with a suggestion of “promiscuity”. By definition rape is not the absence of promiscuity, rape is the absence of consent, and it perturbs me deeply that he can’t even see that distinction.

I don't believe our culture is a rape culture. I believe people will do evil, that others will defend those who do evil, but I also believe that there are far more people willing to help, support, and do good. 

To conclude, I want to say thank you. To everyone from the intern who made me oatmeal when I woke up at the hospital that morning, to the deputy who waited beside me, to the nurses who calmed me, to the detective who listened to me and never judged me, to my advocates who stood unwaveringly beside me, to my therapist who taught me to find courage in vulnerability, to my boss for being kind and understanding, to my incredible parents who teach me how to turn pain into strength, to my grandma who snuck chocolate into the courtroom throughout this to give to me, my friends who remind me how to be happy, to my boyfriend who is patient and loving, to my unconquerable sister who is the other half of my heart, to Alaleh, my idol, who fought tirelessly and never doubted me. Thank you to everyone involved in the trial for their time and attention. Thank you to girls across the nation that wrote cards to my DA to give to me, so many strangers who cared for me.

Most importantly, thank you to the two men who saved me, who I have yet to meet. I sleep with two bicycles that I drew taped above my bed to remind myself there are heroes in this story. That we are looking out for one another. To have known all of these people, to have felt their protection and love, is something I will never forget.

There is one rapist, but there were at least two men willing to do what was right. 

 

[Rin]

Rape culture is a really weird phrase. It's more like lawyer culture in this case.

 

[Robert E Lee]

Rape culture is a really weird phrase. It's more like lawyer culture in this case.

More like Judge dropped the ball culture.