It is a sad truth to those who walk through these "shielded" campuses when they see the abhorrent life-altering effects of a sexual assault that have become all too familiar to our society. The college process changes every year, students tour the classrooms, campuses, while also catching a glimpse into the cold, depressing, and suicidal life of a college student that has been sexually assaulted.
Fortunately, it is not too serious of a crime, it is not worth concerning the government, the effects are not always lifelong, but since these effects are mainly related to the mental health of a victim, it is tolerable. Waking up in a cold sweat in fear the rapist has come back becomes a routine along with the plummeting grades, and loss of life's meaning to the victim. Everyone has nightmares once in a while, but they are not real, just figments of the human mind. It is a shame when we hear that "One in 5 women and one in 16 men are sexually assaulted while in college." When we hear these statistics, sympathy is felt however there is no action taken to solve this issue. In a simpler time, the only thing college students would worry about was fitting in, achieving academic goals, and passing finals and now, it is a fight for survival.
Although, it is probable that "she was asking for it", and "he wanted it", it is obviously the only logical explanation for this. Maybe she was drunk too, you know how it gets, one thing leads to the next and the next morning someone is crying rape. But no, the government does not see this as the problem, the real "problem" is the "$154,423 in expenses the government pays following a rape," is, of course, more important to save money than to save lives. This expense, however, is nothing compared to the physical and emotional toll an assault will take on a victim, but lawmakers are more concerned over the financial cost, rather than the health of the victim.
Altogether, we must work to find a more effective solution, or get used to living in the society where it is okay to rob someone of their body, dignity, and their being. Get used to living in a world where college students believe a simple "hello" or a kiss on the cheek grants consent from both parties later in the night to engage in sexual relations.
One of the worst problems our country faces is the Rape Kit Backlog. When a victim is assaulted, and if they end up reporting it, they must endure tests in efforts to catch the aggressor. The victim will have invasive tests conducted such as DNA swabs, body fluids, and pictures, these all make up a rape kit. This rape kit is then tested up against databases such as CODIS and the FBI National Database, to see if the offender is already in the system and can be identified.
Problem solved, right? Wrong. The Rape Kit Backlog is a serious defect in our country that we must work to fix. Endthebacklog.org suggests in New York alone, there are 1,981 untested rape kits. This means the criminals who committed these acts are out free while these kits lie untested. The time they could be serving in jail for their heinous acts. Although this alone is an astounding number, states like Florida are even worse. 13,435. 13,435 untested rape kits. That's 13,435 potential arrests, 13,435 potential criminals, and 13,435 victims awaiting justice. Like myself, you are probably outraged by this number and asking yourself; why.
Unfortunately, one of the biggest problems revolves around the countries policies and systems. Depending on the police department, unfortunately, some prioritize cases in what they believe is more important. In other words, there needs to be more time and resources dedicated to sexual assault cases. The bigger issue is the lack of crime labs and funds necessary to keep them functioning. The bottom line is, action needs to be taken, and soon, as these numbers of untested kits continue to climb.
Luckily, there are ways that we can work to change these policies which will aid in the testing of these rape kits and prevent the backlog. In your state alone, you can write to your governor or other state officials advocating for rape kit reform laws. These will require law enforcement agencies and crime labs to make this a priority.
Victims have already taken the tremendous step to report their rapes and endure a rape kit, the least we could do for them is test it and investigate, the way it should be. Justice will prevail.
