Interesting thoughts.
Particularly your comment that "Having said that, I don't think that all rape victims should formally accuse their rapists. " That should get some sparks flying! If it really was rape, which your statement says, I really think it should be reported, since a man who rapes once has a much higher likelihood of raping again. I think what you may have meant to say, though, was that not all sexual encouters,even where they may fit the technical definition of rape, should be considered actual rapes. If that's what you meant to say, I can agree with you. After all, technically, if a couple is engaging in intercourse and the woman says "that's it, pull out now" and the man doesn't instantly pull out, he's raping her. But it's hard to justify putting that in the same category as breaking into an apartment and raping someone at gunpoint.
I am assuming -- hoping? -- that the prosecuting attorney here did a good job of evaluating this case, and that there is a good case to be made that it fell well over the line of technical definition.
As to waiting before all the facts are in, I think the whole point of the issue was the call for feminists to rally around the woman in support. Bryant has such a public presence, so much money and fame, so many resounrces, while she has only her parents, if that, on her side, that it's really an unbalanced situation, and that she needs to have people speaking out on her behalf, too. It just, as you say, that it seems one may need to swallow hard in order to feel much enthusiasm for speaking out on her behalf. |
