Irene Troy
Jul 27, 2017 · 2 min read

I am so very tired of people who blame women for being victims. If a woman decides to go out with her friends and drink, then she is at least partially responsible for her rape. What about the men who witness her being incapacitated? I suppose they have no responsibility to protect her, to take some action that will keep her safe, if even from herself? Of-course, they may be excused because…well, they are men and we all know no one should expect them to care what another man does. There are NO, repeat NO circumstances in which a victim of rape shares ANY responsibility for her victimization. These same people excuse men for being drunk because, well…that’s what men do, right? Or, they excuse his actions while drunk because “he really didn’t know what he was doing” or “he would never have done that if he hadn’t been drunk.” People who say “of-course, she isn’t to blame for the rape, but she really shouldn’t have been drinking/dressed as she dressed/gone where she went/talked to whom she talked/etc should consider what role non-raping men and other women play in the continued victimization.

I am also fed up with men who insist that many women, particularly women of college age, make up stories of rape when they become angry with the man. The manner in which people from law enforcement to intimate partners respond to rape victims is enough to dissuade anyone from reporting the crime.

Gordon College is known as a very conservative, very closed community. Hate toward non-conformity runs rampant and has for generations. The school is the Oral Roberts of New England. Women, or as they refer to them, girls, are considered second-class citizens and viewed as unequal to their male counterparts. Women who report unwelcome sexual advances of any sort are told to “pray for guidance” and “practice better self-control.” The atmosphere at the college is extremely patriarchal, beyond what is seen at most modern universities. It is hardly surprising that the college and local police would seek to blame the victim and to silence both the victim and her supporters in whatever fashion possible.

    Irene Troy

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