International

Group Suggests Age Appropriate Sex Education? Time to Freak Out.

by Cara June 17, 2010

Well, here we go again. Every few months or so, some public official or organization makes a common sense observation that sex education is largely useless unless we start it early, and thus expresses support for age appropriate sex education for kids as soon as they start school. Cue the outrage, as a variety of [...]

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Anti-Domestic Violence Campaign Centers World Cup and Misses Its Mark

by Cara June 7, 2010

Trigger Warning for violent imagery, discussions of intimate partner violence, and victim-blaming. A new campaign against domestic violence has just been launched in West Yorkshire, England. According to police, domestic violence increased by 30% during the last World Cup in 2006. They’re looking to prevent that from happening again this year. Let me say, first [...]

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Boys Aged 10 and 11 Convicted of Attempted Rape as Apologists Deny Assault Was Possible

by Cara May 25, 2010

Trigger Warning for rape apologism. Linked articles contain descriptions of sexual assault. Out of the U.K. comes an extremely disturbing case in which two young boys, aged 10 and 11, have been convicted of attempting to rape an 8-year-old girl. I’ll let that sink in for a moment. The case raises numerous ethical conundrums and [...]

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England and Wales Move to Grant Anonymity to Rape Defendants

by Cara May 21, 2010

In England and Wales, there’s a plan underway to grant anonymity to those who are accused of rape but have not been convicted. Yes, under this plan, the name of the alleged victim would not be the only one withheld from public knowledge for reasons of safety and privacy. And understandably, local anti-rape activists have [...]

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Defense Attorney Claims Convicted Rapist “Didn’t Realize” the Severity of Rape

by Cara May 18, 2010

Trigger Warning for discussions of sexual violence, rape apologism, and racism. In Adelaide, Australia, a taxi driver named Hajy Baba Rahmanian was found guilty of raping an unconscious passenger. The details of the rape itself are, of course, rather horrific: The court heard that in June 2006 the 19-year-old victim got into Rahmanian’s taxi after [...]

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Release of Innocent Man Shows Huge Flaws in Sexual Assault Prosecutions

by Cara May 7, 2010

In Australia, a man named Farah Jama was recently released from jail after spending 15 months there on a wrongful conviction for rape. Jama (pictured left) had an alibi for the night, was not seen by any witnesses at the scene of the alleged crime, and was not identified by the alleged victim, who was [...]

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New Report on Murdered and Missing Aboriginal Women and Girls in Canada

by Cara April 23, 2010

The Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) has, through their Sisters in Spirit initiative, gathered information and released a report on Aboriginal women and girls who have gone missing or been murdered in Canada over the past generation (pdf). They found a total of 582 cases. Of those, 393 died as a result of murder [...]

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Rape Apologism in Action: “She didn’t say anything at all.”

by Cara April 20, 2010

Trigger Warning for rape apologism and graphic descriptions of rape, especially in linked article. An ongoing UK rape case presents us with a perfect example of rape apologism, and the grave cultural misunderstanding over what exactly constitutes both rape and consent. Jack Tweed, the widower of a reality show star, is charged on two counts [...]

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Northern Territory Justice Comes Out Against Calling Rape “Rape”

by Cara April 16, 2010

Trigger Warning for rape apologism and discussion of victim grooming. Last year, a teacher from Northern Territory, Australia was arrested for engaging in sexual contact with a 13-year-old student. He was arrested because this contact, which he had willfully and knowingly engaged in, is illegal. It is illegal precisely because it has been determined in [...]

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Demand for Open Investigation Into Death of Aboriginal Trans Woman in Custody

by Cara April 12, 2010

One year ago, Veronica Baxter, an Australian woman who was both Aboriginal and trans, was arrested on drug charges. Less than one week after her arrest, she died in custody. On March 10, 2009, three days after Mardi Gras, 34-year-old Veronica Baxter was arrested by Redfern police. She was charged with six counts of supplying [...]

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