Brock Allen Turner is a rapist. He and his family may be afraid of the word, but I am not.
No, this was not an act of drunkenness. No, not all men decide that they will sexually assault women when they have alcohol in their system. Brock Allen Turner knew what he was doing when he decided to rape this 23-year-old woman (who I cannot identify by name since she has decided to remain anonymous). According to the rape victim’s released letter, Brock said that he wanted to “hook-up” with someone that night. He was looking for a victim that night, and he chose the unconscious woman behind a dumpster. He chose the easy target. Because how could she defend herself? How could she say no?
Brock’s six-month sentence disgusts me. But, I’m not surprised. I’m not surprised that a white male has been given leniency by the law, yet again. I’m not surprised that rape is being brushed under the sofa, yet again. And, I’m definitely not surprised that Brock’s father thinks that six months — actually, three months — is a “steep punishment.” Brock obviously had to learn from somewhere that it is OK to take what you want. That it’s okay to violate the rights of other human beings in order to satisfy your own needs.
But Brock is the one who is suffering, right Mr. Turner? Because he’s not eating his favorite foods anymore? Boo-hoo. Whatever “troubles” Brock is experiencing -- he deserves them. He deserves to feel like a load of crap because that is what he is. You want to know who is really suffering? The woman who Brock raped. She is suffering now and she will continue to suffer. She’ll breathe in a particular scent, she’ll pass a particular sign or she’ll hear a certain word and she’ll be reminded of what Brock did to her. It’ll send her right back to that very moment and it’ll consume her. But I hope and pray that it doesn’t consume her for the rest of her life. I hope that someday, somehow, she’ll be able to find peace. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but I hope the day will come when she no longer has to be afraid. When she can begin to trust again. When she can go back to that very area and not feel a single thing.
I don’t care if Brock can swim a million miles on end. That does not justify the leniency of his sentence. Why isn’t he being held in jail for the amount of time that his crime calls for? Because he has potential? Because it might “harm” him? What about the harm he caused to his poor victim? Did she not have potential, too? Brock dehumanized his victim on the day he penetrated her behind a dumpster. Nothing can excuse his actions. Why does he deserve leniency because it was his first offense? Does that mean that everyone deserves a one-time-free-rape pass? Definitely not.
Thank you to the two bicyclists who came this woman’s rescue. I am afraid to even imagine what might have happened had you not been there that night. I’m sorry that you had to experience that horrifying scene, but I’m even sorrier that she had to experience Brock Allen Turner’s violence. I’m sorry that she didn’t get the justice that she deserved.
All I ask is for us not to forget Brock Allen Turner — don’t let his crime fade away. Let him remember every day of his life that he is a rapist. Let us remember that rape is real and is serious. It is unforgivable and should be treated as such by society and by the law.
