I'm certain that you have heard about it already.
A Stanford University female student was raped by male student, swimmer Brock Turner, in 2015.
A trial resulted and she read a letter to him about the ordeal.
He was facing 14 years in prison. He received six months, shocking most who were following the story.
Judge Aaron Persky, once a Stanford University student athlete as well, received a letter from Brock Turner’s father, Dan A. Turner, stating that his son’s life had been altered beyond repair because of the events that had taken place. Some believe that this letter may have affected the judge's decision.
To Mr. Turner, I have one question. What if your son was your daughter?
What if your daughter was raped behind a dumpster, her attacker was caught by eye witnesses, and she was being blamed for it by others for having a drink and for wearing an outfit that she felt confident in?
What if your daughter stood in front of her attacker, whom she does not know but she does know that he has been inside her, and spoke her feelings to him with more confidence than most possess?
Wouldn't you think, as her father, that her life had been altered beyond repair?
Wouldn't you want her attacker to go to jail for the time that the crime called for so that justice would be served, if you will, and so that no one else would have to be victimized by this person like she was? Wouldn't you want no other girl to have to wake up in a hospital, with bruises on her body that she didn't remember having yesterday, being poked and prodded, and wondering why she wasn't wearing panties?
Wouldn't you want no other girl to have to be informed that she had been raped?
Wouldn't you want no other girl to have to pretend that she was just fine, when she wasn't even close to that?
Wouldn't you want no other girl to have to break down in front of her boyfriend because she couldn't bear the thought of telling him what happened or him touching her at all?
Wouldn't you want more people to begin to see that alcohol consumption and revealing clothing does not cause rape?
Wouldn't you want, in the future, for college women to not have to carry pepper spray or their keys in an upright position when they go out? Wouldn't you want them to be able to have a drink, wear what they want, and not have to worry about someone they don't know, or someone who they do know, deciding that they both want to have sex that night?
Most importantly, wouldn't you want your daughter to have peace of mind and be able begin the repairing process? Wouldn't you want the attacker to learn that consent is consent and that things that may have played a role in this decision, such as white privilege and save-the-day parents, will not always get you through? Decisions are decisions and causes have effects.
Again, Mr. Turner, what if your son was your daughter?
