CitizenSugar -- Breaking News, Together.

AIDS Group Says Zimbabwe Using Rape As a Tool of Terror

LibertySugar — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:15:57 -0700

The Zimbabwe government's youth militia use the most horrific tactic — rape — as a tool to terrorize those suspected of sympathizing with the opposition. President Robert Mugabe's ruling party has been carrying out a campaign of political terror since opposition supporters contested his election.

Today's New York Times paints a graphic picture of how many of Zimbabwe's women have been abused, humiliated, and raped, often in front of their families. State hospitals have turned away rape victims, who are often in pain and bleeding, and looking to prevent pregnancy, HIV, or other STDs.

To find out how an upcoming power-sharing deal might mean the perpetrators never see justice,

What to Do If You Are a Victim of Rape

DearSugar — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 16:00:00 -0700

Any type of forced sexual assault that you don't consent to is considered rape. It's a crime if the attacker is a stranger, if you know your attacker (85 percent of women do), if you're related to them, or even if they are your spouse. It's a crime even if you were drinking, doing drugs, given drugs, or too out of it to say no or fight back.

If you are the victim of a rape, here's what you should do:

Get to a close, safe place.
Immediately go to a hospital or ER. Don't shower or change your clothes. The doctor will examine you and collect evidence including pieces of hair, clothing fibers, saliva, and semen to be placed in a rape kit that may be later used by police or in a court of law.
If you are using hormonal birth control or an IUC then pregnancy is not likely, but if you're not, the doctor may recommend you take emergency birth control (Plan B).
Chances are that the rapist did not use a condom, so the doctor will most likely test you for STIs.
Since being sexually assaulted can have huge emotional and psychological ramifications, a therapist may be recommended. It's a good idea to talk to someone about your experience to help you cope with the strong feelings of sadness, disbelief, fear, guilt, and anxiety you may have.

Unfortunately in this day and age, it's necessary for young women to know and talk about rape, so do your fellow females a favor and pass this important information onto the women in your life that you care about.

Source

No Death Penalty, But Should Rapists Face Castration?

LibertySugar — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 15:45:43 -0700

Convicted rapists and other sex offenders now face chemical castration in Louisiana, under legislation signed on the day the US Supreme Court struck down the state's child-rape death penalty. California was the first state to subject its sex offenders to the procedure popularized by the Nazis who wanted to prevent "undesirables" from procreating.Upon signing the law, Louisiana's governor Bobby Jindal said: "I am glad we have taken such strong measures . . . to put a stop to these monsters’ brutal acts."On a side note, Governor Jindal is all sorts of interesting. Currently the youngest US governor, and the nation's first of Indian decent, the potential McCain VP has defended intelligent design and written about his participation in an exorcism. Not everyone supports chemical castration like Governor Jindal. While it can reduce physical urges, critics argue, psychological counseling is needed to address mental addiction behind assaults. Do you favor sentencing sex offenders to chemical castration?Source

No Death Penalty, But Should Rapists Face Castration?

Definitely! They obviously can't control themselves.

No way. It's not their privates that cause them to assault, it's their brains!

Maybe. But we should pair it with psychological treatment, too.

Other. I'll tell you in the comments.

Groups Oppose Abortion for 11-year-old in Romania

CitizenSugar — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:55:14 -0700

Groups Oppose Abortion For 11-Year-Old in Romania Twenty church groups on Thursday urged a government committee not to allow an 11-year-old girl who was raped by her uncle to go to Britain for an abortion. The antiabortion Christian Orthodox groups also threatened to press charges if the girl were allowed to have a termination in Romania. Their position was in contrast to the official stand of the Romanian Orthodox Church, which said the decision should be left to the girl's family.

What You Should Know About Date-Rape Drugs

DearSugar — Fri, 23 May 2008 16:00:00 -0700

Since sexual assault is so prevalent, it's important to talk about how date-rape drugs could play a part. Staying educated about these drugs is a great way to keep yourself safe so check out the chart below to learn about three very popular date-rape drugs.

Drug	Appearance/Form	Effect on Person
GHB (gamma hydroxybutyric acid)	Liquid with no color or odor, white powder, or a pill.	Relaxation, dizziness, vomiting, sweating, unconsciousness, memory loss, coma, death.
Rohypnol (flunitrazepam): also called Rufies	A pill that dissolves in liquids. Newer pills turn the liquid blue, but older ones that have no color are still available.	Drowsiness, drunk {feeling}, problems talking, seeing, or moving, confusion, dizziness, loss of consciousness.
Ketamine (ketamine hydrochloride)	White powder.	Hallucinations, problems breathing, feeling out of control, lost sense of time and identity, numbness, slurred speech, vomiting.

To find out how to protect yourself from being a victim of a date-rape drug,

Girl Seeks Rape Justice on YouTube: Too Much Sharing?

CitizenSugar — Thu, 15 May 2008 15:45:08 -0700

It's a grim addition to the court of YouTube: a Florida 16-year-old who says she's a victim in a rape case that's gone unprosecuted by the Orange County state attorney's office is airing her plea for justice on the video-sharing site.

Get Flash to see this player.

In the video, she says, "Hi, my name is Crystal . . . I need some help. I didn't want to do it this way, but it's the only way I know that's going to work, that someone out there in the world is gonna listen to me. "The prosecutor wrote in her case file since Crystal was "a mere 1 month away" from turning 16, when it would be "legal to give consent," her case would not be prosecuted. Florida law states that a 15-year-old cannot give consent to sex. To see the danger behind this use of technology,

States Must Pay for Anonymous Rape Exams

LibertySugar — Wed, 14 May 2008 09:00:20 -0700

Trauma and embarrassment prevent many rape victims from seeking medical help or contacting authorities immediately. In an effort to resolve more rape cases, anonymous rape kits will be available at hospitals, colleges, and clinics. This way, after the shock has worn off, and a victim decides to press charges, it will not be too late to present evidence.

Here's how it will work — rape kits include bags and other storage materials for physical evidence like hair, semen, or skin. During the exam, injuries are also photographed. Unlike typical exam kits, the evidence collected with anonymous kits will be stored in a sealed and numbered envelope, only to be opened by police if the victim requests it.

If states want to keep federal funding toward law enforcement and women shelters, provided by the Violence Against Women Act, they will have to pay for these "Jane Doe" rape exams kits, at $800 each.

Considering that as many as 60 percent of rapes are not reported, do you think this is a responsible way to enforce rape laws and make the community safer? What about the victims — will they be more likely to show their faces at a clinic if they know the evidence will be kept secret until they say otherwise?

Source

An Important Statement or Inappropriate Message?

CitizenSugar — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 16:00:14 -0700

Jennifer Baumgardner, a Brooklyn writer has designed a simple T-shirt with a complicated message. The T-shirt shows a picture of a safe, with a tiny card inside which reads, "I was raped." She hopes that the simple message will make an unassuming object, like the T-shirt, and open the sensitive topic for everyday conversation. She says, "So many people who’ve been raped tend to doubt the experience. I do think it’s often empowering for women and men to own that experience and divest themselves of some of the shame and secrecy of it — and realize that they’re not the ones that should be ashamed.”

Baumgardner also designed a T-shirt reading, "I had an abortion." When she test-wore the shirt past a group of young men she found, “I’d be afraid that it would invite the same derision and hostility that I associate with the rape." The insight that she still had those feelings and the fact that the T-shirt helped with them, she said, made the experience worthwhile.After all the comments this morning about the judge's decision to outlaw the word "rape" from his courtroom, I'm curious: Is this an appropriate way to start discussion? Or is the forum of a T-shirt too casual for the topic? Source

An Important Statement or Inappropriate Message?

Important statement. She's absolutely right to start an honest debate like this.

Inappropriate message. I think the T-shirt further victimizes the wearer.

Good message, but this is the wrong place for it. What if a kid sees it?

Other. I'll tell you in the comments.

Dear Poll: Would You Wear This?

DearSugar — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 16:00:00 -0700

April is Sexual Assault Awareness month, which is why Jennifer Baumgardner's new T-shirt controversy is so fitting. If her name sounds familiar, it's because she was the brains behind the "I had an abortion" T-shirt worn by indie rocker Ani DiFranco three years ago in a public venue. As if that didn't cause enough controversy, she's back with a new version, but this time the shirt reads "I was raped." Since there's so much negativity, shame, and fear surrounding rape, Baumgardner hopes her T-shirts will force the general public to think and talk about it. Some might say this shirt is crossing the line, but she defends herself by saying,

The wearer isn’t advertising that he or she was raped, but rather opening up to you, the viewer, and also saying that this is a small part of who he or she is.

So ladies, even if you haven't been a victim of sexual assault yourself, you might know someone that has, so tell me, would you ever wear this shirt in hopes of raising awareness about rape?

Dear Poll: Would You Wear This?

Yes

Other — And I have something to say about it!

Appeals Court Upholds Judge's Ban of the Word Rape

CitizenSugar — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 03:00:20 -0700

An appeals court just let stand a judge's ban of the use of the words, "rape," and "rape kit," "assailant," and "victim" during a sexual assault trial. Three judges on the 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals said that the federal court didn't have jurisdiction in the case forcing the plaintiff, Tory Bowen, to continue her appeal still seeking justice.

During the original trial, the judge allowed the defendant's attorney to use the words, "sex" and "intercourse." The judge objected to the words like "rape" because the terms are value-laden, not legal terms, and could inflame the passions of a jury. The plaintiff therefore had to testify for 13 hours describing the event that happened to her as "sex." She said the ban in her opinion meant she had to lie on the witness stand. “The word ‘sex’ implies consent. I never once would describe (what happened) as sex.” She was afraid that the jury would think she had chosen to use the word.

The first trial ended in a hung jury.

Do you agree with the judge that words like rape are unfairly inflammatory? Do you think delaying justice over the parsing of a term makes the plaintiff have to relive the experience over and over?

Source