An Open Letter To The New Anti-Rape Activists Who Showed Up To Support NC’s HB2


Dear Fellow Anti-Rape Activists,

Hello. You’ve joined the wrong fight. How did you end up here?

A lot of you have surprised me by announcing your sudden concern over the epidemic of sexual assault in our country. It’s true, sexual assault is of crucial concern since these acts of violence occur once every 107 seconds to more than 293,000 victims every year. Those of us who have worked with victims have been trying to tell the world how widespread and pervasive these crimes are for years.

It’s odd, though, that you only choose to raise your voices in support of bills like North Carolina’s HB2. You insist everywhere you can insert your opinion that your main concern in supporting this bill is the threat to women and girls from transgender women sharing their restrooms and pool showers. Even if transgender women won’t sexually assault women as soon as they’re in a restroom together, you insist that pedophiles and rapists will pose as transgender women in order to assault women and children if these laws aren’t voted in.

 

 

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Yes, you’re suddenly everywhere, and suddenly very concerned about people being sexually assaulted. I’ll pass over the fact that incidences of women and children being assaulted in public bathrooms by transgender people is an incredibly invalid concern, since it doesn’t happen in any numbers that are discernible. In fact, it’s more likely that the transgender person will be assaulted than the women and children you’re so concerned about. People like me tell you that all the time and you ignore it.

I’ll also skip telling you that HB2 is about much, much more than who can use which bathroom, but I’m going to go with the part of the bill that seems to offend you so and inspires all this new passion you have for protecting women and children from sexual assault.

Let’s do talk about your very sudden concern over sexual assault and why its timing makes you suspect.

Where were you during all the years that we told you that rape and sexual assault really were happening on college campuses? It seems that some of you not only refused to believe us, you were openly hostile about it. Rape on college campuses wasn’t happening at the alarming rate we said it was, you told us, that was all a liberal, feminist lie. Even when victims came forward to tell their stories, you either remained silent or insisted that the statistics were all a myth.

Where were you when we discussed the pervasiveness of rape culture in our country? When we insisted that our culture of discounting victim’s voices, objectifying women, and revictimizing those who report were contributing to the problem, you told us we were perpetual victims and inventing problems. You insisted that we were using too all-encompassing a definition of rape to believe what we told you. Some of the same ultra-Conservatives who are so concerned today about the potential for rape and sexual assault that they feel the need to violate the constitutional rights of millions of people were notably absent from conversations about how to change the culture, or they ridiculed its very mention.

You don’t get to use your newfound concern for this complete non-issue when you weren’t there for the real ones. You don’t get to proclaim in the same voice that discounts the real victims’ stories that you’re concerned about sexual assault. You aren’t now and you never have been.

What have any of you actually done to advance this struggle? Have you circulated petitions to strengthen the laws that allow 98% of reported rapists to continue to walk the streets? Have you called your congressmen or senators to insist on greater protections and increased services for the vast numbers of victims who report sexual assault? Have you volunteered at your local rape crisis center or donated to help keep those services available?

All I’ve seen you do so far is practice some misguided slacktivism on Facebook, arguing with those who know that restricting the rights of LGBTQ folks is wrong that your main concern is the protection of women and children.

You aren’t fooling anyone. You’ve proven too many times in the past that you don’t care. You never have, so don’t use us to defend your bigotry.

 

Featured image via Getty/Raleigh News & Observer