So, as our project approaches its end I wanted to talk about the most
difficult topic our class has covered (for me anyway)...rape. As common and prevalent as the threat of rape among women is, i still feel like most women have the mentality that it could never happen to them, yet everyone engages in behaviors that they think will prevent any unwanted male attention. For me rape is something that hits way to close to home. I have had someone very close to me suffer because of something that happened years ago... even though she is a wife and mother now, it is very obvious that some part of her died the day that she was raped. some of the points i heard in class had to do with the threat of rape being equal to the threat of being robbed... my question to that is: does being robbed violate your body? does it ruin you emotionally? does being robbed violate your womanhood?... My answer is no. i'm not trying to be controversial or anything, but i don't think its fare when women decide to act like threat of rape is less than it is, and to further say that it isn't more damaging than being pick-pocketed or mugged.
....Anyway after that rant. I wanted to use this opportunity to encourage people to take part in Take Back the Night. there is one going on tonight april 15th, at Wentworth in Boston. its an organization that aims to make the night a safe place for women. its a really worthwhile cause and something i'm really devoted too.
the website is
www.takebackthenight.org
they have tons of events, posters etc.. check it out and get involved. no woman should ever have to go through the emotional and physical trauma of rape. its not right, and it needs to end.
1 comment:
Thank you for this post! I think that Monday's class was very difficult for many members of our class (including me). This is an issue that affects many of our lives and thus is very difficult to talk about from a sociological perspective. It's nearly impossible to discuss something as a "social issue" when it feels so terribly personal.
I appreciate all of the students in our class that have spoken up about this topic and I appreciate Meredith for reminding us that sexual assault is a violence that goes beyond anything we can discuss in class. It is not just an attack on our minds, our souls and our sense of being, it is an attack on our bodies - the one thing that is meant to be ours alone.
As you all write your responses this week remember that this is not simply an abstract social issue. This is a reality!
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