This Secret Society Of Women Is Fighting To Unseat Stanford Rape Case Judge
The horrifying details of how 39 people willfully ignored eyewitness testimony and wrote letters to the judge to excuse convicted rapist Brock Turner of an appropriate punishment for his horrible crime just keep coming.
Their precious Speedo-wearing douche canoe of a son/friend/ex-boyfriend/frat brother has really pushed America's red buttons. The anger over the case has boiled over rather than retreated to a simmer.
Just like thoughts and prayers don't help sick people spontaneously heal or reanimate, anger and status updates don't do much to help the case of Brock Turner and his "village", who have successfully let him grow up thinking that a drunk woman's body is a golden ticket.
Instead of stewing, men and women across the world are taking action in real life. The cause powering all of this feminist fire and brimstone: a light sentence for the perpetrator. Which is now even lighter at three months as reported by Cosmo on Friday, doled out by ELECTED OFFICIAL, Judge Aaron Persky.
Judge Persky is now being threatened with an election recall thanks to the efforts of activists spanning the full spectrum of women-loving humanity. As of this writing, four events are being held on June 15 to sign letters addressed to Judge Persky's county.
The ripple effect has begun, since not only laypeople are angry. A host of professors and the legal community in Stanford have already successfully removed Persky from a similar sexual violence case. But the outrage has really only just begun.
Intersectional feminist and community organizer, Remy Holwick, has harnessed the power of the secret society of women, GrlCvlt, to mic check this message from 12 people in a living room to 1000 people each in four cities.
It appears that this case has not only struck a nerve, but caused a powerful reflex action. GrlCvlt founders Annaliese Nielsen and Holwick are orchestrating a huge effort to take steps to stop these cases from just becoming things to rant about on Facebook.
The New York gathering can be found here.
Holwick hints that her anger over this case was not only heard, but sharply amplified with each additional voice,
I think this is an issue affecting every woman and I think this case is a lightning rod. I'm so proud of all the women who have stepped up and supported the event and demanded change.
It seems that coming together to not only support the victims of these crimes, but the dismantling of the system that keeps victims in the shadows is the goal here.
Holwick goes on to describe what she would say to Judge Perksy if they were face-to-face,
You are on the wrong side of history. I have read your letters of support from the public defenders and I am saddened that someone considered a "good" judge moved forward with a sentence that he knew would send a message to women, telling us that a white man's potential is more important than justice for a woman. I'm sad that you chose to send a message of marginalization to our gender. We won't take it lying down.
GrlCvlt in Oakland's event can be found here.
The need for women to come together and protect not only each other, but other marginalized communities is stronger than ever as sexual violence and domestic violence disproportionately target women, children, people of color, and most recently and devastatingly, the LGBTQ community. This is unacceptable to GrlCvlt and to Remy, who preach a new wave of feminism that circles the wagons around everyone.
She says:
I think we all need to look in the mirror and realize that our circumstances are so largely by chance. If you are a white, cis woman, your birth into that class was pure chance. If you have had enough security in your life to never engage in sex work or have had the luxury of choosing not to, that is also by chance. It's by chance that you wound up that fortunate. Realize that you could just as easily have been born on any other path. Look hard at your feminism and make sure that it doesn't just support those chance circumstances (in the mirror). You can still support yourself and your cause while carrying the torch for your fellows. You're stronger that way. They are stronger that way. You are stronger together.
Los Angeles GrlCvlt gathering is on Friday and can be found here.
Perhaps most importantly about GrlCvlt's gatherings is that the sentiment spreads to male feminists as well. The need for men to put down their defensive “not all men” shields and link arms with the feminist community is greater than ever. Holwick thinks men are part of our strength,
I think straight cis men feel guilty because they know they benefit from the social order and it's uncomfortable, but it's also terrifying to think they could be seen as part of the problem by being complicit with it. Don't defend yourselves. Defend us instead. That's the way to REALLY prove that not all men are the problem.
Men, women and every human really need to join hands and help to end sexual assault against everyone. But women remain particularly vulnerable. Holwick says,
Over a third of women have been raped in the US and as a whole, we related to this survivor because every single woman has been her or has a close friend or loved one who has been her. I also think that we are becoming aware as a society that our culture is allowing this to happen and we refuse to stand by and take it.
Australia's GrlCvlt event can be found here.
Join Remy Holwick and her girl gladiators as they light candles for victims, drink, dance and sign out Judge Aaron Persky before he can rack up any more white privilege points. The gatherings are welcome to those legal to drink in their location of any gender.
Doling out punishment based on how much the perp's parents and community loved them, it seems, rather than how much pain and suffering they caused their victims is the last straw for those fighting to end rape culture, starting with giving Persky the ax. It looks like between 1.2 million people on Change.org and 6,000 mobilized women ripe with righteous anger, he doesn't have much time left on the bench.
