Sep

28

Proud to be part of this movement

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Filed Under Motivating Moments, Public Policy | By Linda Hunter | Leave a Comment

Why do I think about writing a blog mostly when something causes me to feel frustrated or sad?  Or sometimes just left me puzzled, usually with questions that aren’t even answerable…in my lifetime at least?

So, I’ve been on the lookout for something I consider positive to write about.  I found it.

“Rape in the United States: The Chronic Failure to Report and Investigate Rape Cases.”  I know.  I know.  If that sounds positive to me, you don’t want to read about anything I’d consider negative.  But wait.  Recently the Senate Judiciary Committee held a Crime and Drugs Subcommittee hearing to “draw attention to how the crime of rape is treated in our country.”

That’s how Susan Carbon, Director of the Office on Violence Against Women, described the hearing’s purpose.  Reading her testimony gave me that first inkling I’d found something positive.  She didn’t sugarcoat the failure of reporting and investigating sexual assault. Though plenty of her testimony sets off alarms, she acknowledged years of activism that “began to transform the way that sexual violence was viewed and addressed in our society.” That made me proud to be part of this work.

I’d read CNN’s Feds undercounting rape victims, advocates warn highlighting the glut of problems with using Uniform Crime Report (UCR) data.

Advocates question the rape statistics because, they note, the federal government is using a 1929 definition of the crime that excludes male victims, statutory rapes and those committed without force.

Using such an antiquated, narrow definition is a harmful disservice to countless victims, according to Carol Tracy, executive director of the Philadelphia-based Women’s Law Project.

Not much here to ring positive bells. Oh, except when Senator Arlen Spector says, “I think we can get the FBI to change its definition.”  So let’s get that done!

Breaking the “let’s look for what’s wrong” habit is difficult for me.  Though I agree totally with Carol Tracy’s statement that using UCR stats “is a harmful disservice to countless victims,” I’m thinking, “Yes, and it’s a don’t-even-think-about-going-to-jail card for more perpetrators than I care to imagine.  Why doesn’t somebody testify about that?  Why doesn’t somebody put the spotlight on perpetrators?”

Then I read Scott Berkowitz’ testimony.  Yes, he puts the spotlight on perpetrators.

The Justice Department estimates that 60% of victims never report their rape to police. And since many reports don’t lead to an arrest, and many arrests don’t lead to a conviction or prison time, the bottom line is that only one out of every 16 rapists will ever spend even a single day in jail. One.

Let me put that another way: 15 out of every 16 rapists in America will walk free. Even after all the progress we’ve made — and we have made significant strides in getting more victims to report and improving policing and prosecution — even after years of effort, 15 out of 16 rapists face no consequences for their actions. Not only do they escape any punishment for the crime they’ve just committed, they’re emboldened to commit another rape, and many more after that.

And then with a “well, duh” he adds, “Not surprisingly, rapists have figured this out.”

Knowing that the truth is spoken aloud–by fierce advocates to people who have the power to make needed changes should they have the guts to do it–qualifies as positive, and hopeful, to me.

What do you think?  What positives do you see in the anti-sexual assault movement? What makes you proud to be part of this work?

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