On September 2nd, Brock Turner was released from jail after serving half of his six-month sentence. Since then, Facebook and Twitter users have been mocking his light sentence by saying things like, "I've had food in my fridge longer than Brock Turner was in jail", or "I've had tubes of mascara longer than Brock Turner was in jail". As a nation, this should break our hearts. This is devastating, and it speaks volumes about the prevalence of rape culture in our society.There seems to be more of an uproar about an athlete exercising his first amendment right than there is about a sorry excuse for a human being getting a slap on the wrist for violating an unconscious woman behind a dumpster. This should repulse you. This should knock the wind out of you. If Turner's joke of a sentence hasn't left you infuriated, then you are part of the problem. People have had the audacity to pity Turner because he has lost his swimming career and had to register as a sex offender, yet the victim will be forever haunted by the sickening fact that some entitled, worthless, waste of life decided to force himself on her. I personally don't care that Turner's "life is over", I wish him a lifetime of misery and self-loathing. He is the reason that young men will think it's ok to help themselves to a woman's body. He is the reason that women are told not to drink too much, not to wear revealing clothing, and not to be promiscuous. When will we stop teaching women how to avoid sexual assault and start teaching men not to rape?
Brock Turner, an example was made out of you, but it was not a good one. Someone who is just as repulsive as you will hear of your laughable three-month jail sentence and think that it's ok to sexually assault someone. What's worse is that the judge that gave you this ridiculously lenient sentence, Aaron Persky, is just as much of a waste as you are. Persky has requested to only hear civil cases. He shouldn't get that luxury, after perpetuating rape culture he should resign from his job because he clearly lacks the moral conviction that judges should possess. In fact, this isn't the first time that Persky has treated sexual assault and sexual violence lightly. In one case, Persky sentenced a man who had "child erotica images and possible child pornography images", one of which was an image of a man raping an infant, to four days in prison...four days...that is unfathomable. How did someone so worthless become a judge? How could someone like this be allowed to deliver a verdict on sexual assault cases?
In the days following Turner's sentence, Turner's father wrote a letter asking for clemency. He expressed sadness that due to his son's anxiety because he is now unable to "enjoy a steak dinner". He said that Brock should not be judged so harshly for "twenty minutes of action". This rhetoric is inexcusable. When Turner arrived at the county offices to register as a sex offender, his mother tried to cover him with a blanket, trying to hide her son from the media's gaze. After Turner's pathetic sentencing and release, I'm unsure how to pick up the pieces. I'm unsure of how to bring justice to a victim that our legal system failed. There was no happy ending to her story and if that leaves you anything short of heartbroken, you have some soul-searching to do. Turner's actions have created a domino effect of cowardice. He is a coward and a rapist. Judge Persky is a coward for being in a position of power and using that power to treat sexual assault as if it were a misdemeanor. Dan and Carleen Turner are cowards for raising a son who would do something so despicable. When will we start holding these cowards more accountable?
