It seems your father has beaten me in writing a letter. He told the courts you made a minor mistake—yeah, one that ruined a life. The victim’s. Not yours. Your decision to perpetuate rape culture was a choice you made. Your dad helped you out with that, too. Your father’s saying that ‘boys will be boys’ and that you shouldn’t be held responsible for just “twenty minutes of action” is enabling rape culture.
I think what you have done to the victim is reprehensible. I think that while it is sickening, it is not shocking that in your the case ruling went the way it did. You changed your account of that night, blamed alcohol and promiscuity on the events that took place, and helped place guilt on the victim while you passed the blame. Your case, unfortunately, is why people will continue to rape, it is why so many people will continue to not come forward after they’ve been assaulted, and it is a prime example of how white privilege is real.
While you serve your short jail sentence, perhaps you could learn a thing or two about what sexual assault actually is rather than some drunken, accidental situation you attempted to remove yourself from. Here are some notes I have for you, with the help of your victim’s 13-page statement:
1. If a girl is too drunk to speak or walk, help her—don’t take advantage.
2. This was not an accidental drunken hookup, you made a decision to assault her.
3. The attacker is not a victim. You are not a victim.
4. Don’t hide behind your victim’s words, publicly accept them.
5. Simply take responsibility for your actions.
By now, most of America, I would hope, stays up-to-date on what’s going on in the news and knows not just what you’ve done but what your father’s said and what your judge has ruled.
While you “took away [her] worth", you didn’t take away her voice. I hope your victim’s statement, the one that’s recently gone viral, will resonate with people way longer than your mug shot picture and your father’s ignorant letter.
Overall, it just really saddens me that social media outlets have judged you harder than an actual judge.
