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Assaulter versus sexually assaulted. Who does one believe? How does one tell who’s lying and who isn’t? I recently attended an eye-opening forum on sexual assault on campus that discussed such issues.
A student committee on campus deals with assault issues every day. At the forum, one of these committee members was confused on who he should believe in a certain case. Without giving details, he discussed how difficult it has been for him to take a side in an assault case. He wanted to believe the assaulted, and yet wondered how he could ruin the alleged assaulter’s life if the charges were false. To be responsible for one person’s justification of a terrible tragedy or for another person’s ability to live a normal life is a tough situation.
The answer may be a lot clearer than it seems.
I once sided with the assaulted, yet with some skepticism. There was a real possibility that she could be lying or that the guy may have taken it too far, yet not as far as she said. I thought it was not out of the question that a girl could make up a sexual assault situation or at least dramatize one. I’ve changed my mind.
In unique circumstances, such things I’ve listed above could indeed happen. Not everyone can be trusted. Still, actions speak louder than words and the statistics are what swayed my opinion.
According to this panel, the false reporting rate for any crime is only two percent. Two percent of those assaulted are considered liars. Only two percent of accused assaulters go to jail for a crime they did not commit. It’s upsetting to be wrong in an assault case, and the student committee on campus must seriously think about whose allegations to believe. Still, there are those 98 percent assaulted to think about first and foremost. They are telling the truth as it happened to them. There are no good reasons to lie about such horror.
At this discussion, a girl spoke of how she was raped when she was only 13 years old. She spoke candidly about her feelings about her experience. She shared the details with a room full of strangers. She put herself out on the line to hopefully help other people deal with this topic of sexual assault. No one would willingly do such a thing if it wasn’t important to him or her.
This same girl questioned, why would anyone cry rape? No one would allow him/herself to be scrutinized by an entire society merely to get back at someone else. Speaking out itself is considered rape twice over. The odds are high that a person would not want to suffer through the hell over again if it were not necessary.
Another woman spoke of her experience with sexual assault. She explained how it took years, thousands of dollars and losing her job to prosecute her attacker. She described the true embarrassment of it all. After all these years, she explained, it still makes her angry despite the fact that she won her case.
No one would wish this situation on her worst enemy. There is nothing ideal about crying rape. There is nothing in this world worth the anguish and humiliation of claiming to have been raped.
My plea is for those student committee members who are responsible for justice on campus. Please hear both sides, as that is the only fair way. But remember these two women. Think of their pain and indignity. Above all, remember that 98 percent of these women are telling the truth.
Angela Fiandaca is a sophomore journalism major.
