If you’ve looked at Facebook recently you’ve probably read about the case involving sexual assault at Stanford University. Star athlete and student Brock Turner was proven guilty of sexually assaulting an “anonymous unconscious woman.” He was then sentenced by Judge Aaron Persky to 6 months in jail (instead of the many years that were recommended). As with any controversy, two sides have seemed to emerge. One side includes those who agree with the six-month sentencing. The other includes people who believe that this sentencing is too light and demonstrates how unbalanced the justice system is. These two arguments seem to make up most of our newsfeed and can be overhead in many conversations.
Although I too have an opinion on the matter, I am afraid that with as much as we talk about Brock Turner, Judge Aaron Persky, and the bias of the legal system we are overlooking one very important part of this story- the “anonymous unconscious woman”. She has a voice, and it’s the one we should be hearing.
I encourage you to take time to read the closing court statement given by the victim. The Washington Post has a great article out that includes the whole closing statement. While she understands, more than anyone, how unjust it was for her attacker to be given such a light sentence she didn’t use the majority of her time to speak out against the legal system. Instead, she used her time to encourage and inspire everyone to get involved in stopping this kind of crime from happening again.
In an attempt to let her voice be heard, here are 3 things you can do right now to make a difference:
1. Educate yourself and others about sexual assaults (particularly campus sexual assaults).
Sexual assault is not just rape. Sexual assault can be rape, attempted rape, and any other type of sexual contact without the consent of both people involved.
According to research done by several sources including Rogers William University: One in Five woman have been sexually assaulted in college. While many people have heard this statistic before I am afraid that we just turn a blind eye to the facts. To put things in perspective- one in every six people have blue eyes. Using these statistics if a group of ten college females was gathered at random one would have blue eyes while TWO would have experienced sexual assault. This should not be happening. On top of that, it is estimated that only 12% of campus sexual assaults are reported. There is no ignoring the fact that sexual assault is an epidemic. It’s time to educate ourselves on the facts and raise awareness of a problem that seems to be taking over our society.
2. Educate yourself about the lifelong impact sexual assault can have on the victim.
Sexual assault permanently changes the life of the victim. To Brock Turner’s father what happened was just "twenty minutes of action.” It is people like this who need to understand that those “twenty minutes of action” will forever have an impact in the victims life.
Survivors of sexual assault are likely to develop mental health disorders. The victim in this case talks about the crippling fear and anxiety she deals with on a daily basis. Many survivors of sexual assault will develop major depression as a result of the trauma they experienced. As many as 13% of sexual assault victims will attempt suicide. This means that sexual assault doesn’t just effect a persons life but can also lead to death.
On top of major depression, many sexual assault victims will develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This disorder can cause the victims to have flashbacks, anxiety, and more depression. PTSD can develop immediately after a traumatic event has occurred or it could surface years later. Mental health disorders of any kind take hold of a persons’ life. Dealing with any kind of trauma- especially sexual assault- will never leave the mind of the victim.
On top of struggles with mental health issues, survivors of sexual assault are also likely to experience difficultly within their relationships. For obvious reasons, survivors may feel reserved and unable to fully trust romantic partners in the future. Although this can be worked through, sexual relationships will always present a challenge for the survivors of sexual assault.
This kind of crime changes a person from the inside out.
3. Do something to make a difference.
Everyone knows someone who has been a victim of sexual assault- whether you know their name or not. It could be anyone- your mom, your sister, your best friend, your girlfriend. It is crucial that we raise awareness for the issue and show support to the ones who have experienced sexual assaults.
We cannot keep treating this topic as a taboo. It is hurting the people you love. Raising awareness and support will help bring healing to the hurting and justice to those who deserve it. It will help the other 84% of victims come out and report what happened to them.
Raise your voice. Support the ones you know who have experienced sexual assault and understand the unspoken challenges they face everyday.
It’s time we understand the severity of this crime. Only then can things begin to change.
