Today in Rape Culture: More #Steubenville Awfullness on Twitter
Not actually the victims in Steubenville
The Public Shaming blog and Twitchy.com have been doing the world a service by documenting some of the worst rape apologist nonsense that sprouted up on Twitter in the wake of the Steubenville rape verdict. I thought I would add some more screenshots to the growing pile.
TRIGGER WARNING for some really horrible rape-apologizing bullshit.
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Atheist author Michael Crook had many opinions on the matter, some already cited by Public Shaming. Here are some more:
For more of Crook’s awful thoughts on the case, see this terrible post on his blog. Let me put another TRIGGER WARNING on top of the TRIGGER WARNING I posted above; Crook is really a piece of work, and his post is one of the worst things I’ve read since I started this blog.
Someone calling himself Reality Talks had even more opinions on the subject:
Bill Peace III thinks the whole thing is hilarious — except for the part about the rapists being punished:
A fellow named Tyler figures that the victim “got [what] she deserved.”
A teenager calling himself Space Cowboy shows how the attitudes that define and perpetuate rape culture are absorbed at a pretty young age:
Amazingly, after being called out on his bullshit on Twitter, Space Cowboy seemed to realize that he had been wrong to blame the girl, and deleted his victim-blaming tweets. Assuming he wasn’t being sarcastic when he tweeted that “the girl is an angle, [sic] the boys are to blame entirely,” it’s a heartening development, and evidence that rape culture can be unlearned as well as learned. If he was being sarcastic, his deletion of the offending tweets at least suggests that he now realizes that blaming rape victims is not socially acceptable in all social circles.
The misnamed Truthwatcher, meanwhile, blames everyone but the boys, with his Tweets basically serving as a sort of Rape Culture FAQ.
These are just a few snapshots from the Twitter stream. There’s a lot more nastiness out there.
But these comments are really nothing compared to the crass tweets, and pictures, and videos posted by or otherwise passed around by the rapists and their accomplices and their enablers. Or the threats, some of them made in the wake of the verdict, against the victim from anonymous internetters — and, more to the point, by other students at her school. I can only hope there will be more indictments, not only of the students who participated in the victim’s ordeal but of the adults who knew and did nothing or even worked to cover it up. The whole thing just sickens me.
Posted on March 18, 2013, in men who should not ever be with women ever, misogyny, rape, rape culture, rape jokes, twitter, victim blaming and tagged misogyny, rape, rape apologists, rape culture, rape jokes, Steubenville, twitter. Bookmark the permalink. 203 Comments.
@ostara321
I’m sorry. (I knew I’d forgotten something. I’m sorry for that too.) Hugs if you want them and a kitty.
@some gal
*squees at cute kitty picture*
@some gal - no problem. Here’s a cute pony in a sweater for everyone http://www.visitscotland.com/cms-images/5×3-large/89285/shetland-ponies-cardigans
Scotland - where it’s so cold that even the cute fuzzy horsies need a cardigan. This is why I don’t live there.
D’awwww. OK, how bad is the weather there? Is it like upstate NY where I grew up with six months of winter and snow up to your asscrack?
Summer is that one day in July when it hits 70. My classmates used to put on swimwear and go lie on the grass covered in baby oil when that happened, much to my bemusement.
Those ponies are so cute.
One of the things I notice is the ways in which agency occurs in these comments. She “chose” to do things, and got raped.
They raped her, and “their lives are going to be ruined”.
It happens to them, and she makes it happen to herself.
That’s victim blaming, and rape apologia, in spades.
paul: Nobody can really say who’s to blame
I can… the rapist.
What croggles me (or should, but I’ve seen too much to be really stunned) is that the same people who go on about, “accountability” are now all up in arms that these guys are being held to account.
They committed rape.
I am of a mixed mind on sex offender registries, but that’s not the issue here. The law in Ohio says they are to be put on the register. They were convicted.
There is a simple way to avoid that; don’t rape people. If they had the decency to say, “whoa… she looks too fucked up to know what she wants,” this wouldn’t have happened. Even if (and I don’t) we accept the argument that guys who can’t get laid will rape the helpless, these are football heroes, in a football town. They don’t have a problem getting sex; so this isn’t even defensible on those (specious) grounds.
They raped her. They were convicted. They did the crime, now they have to do the time.
And no, them being drunk doesn’t excuse it. Get drunk and shoot someone… still a crime. Get drunk and drive… that in itself is a crime. Do damage when driving drunk and that’s a crime too; it’s actually exacerbated over doing the same thing when sober.
So you can take your rape apologism, fold it ’til it’s all points, and use it as a suppository.
Sorry if my being late to respond (I read/wrote some hours ago, but family, etc.) is muddying waters.
I could cope with an island of the coast of Calif. I can do lots of stuff.
“paul: ‘Nobody can really say who’s to blame’
I can… the rapist.”
Idk about any one else, but I’d be perfectly happy to hear that a million times. We probably need it said about ten times as often as “nobody can really say…” just to make up for all the years of the “maybe she’s lying” bullshit.
And yes, the passive voice of the news pieces is making me want to subject the writers to my Latin teacher.
Ooh, the Channel Islands? Miniature foxes for everyone!
You know society sucks when rapists get shorter prison sentences than people who illegally download music.
http://gawker.com/5991175/this-two+year+old-onion-story-perfectly-predicted-cnns-shocking-steubenville-rape-trial-coverage
…just don’t read the comments.
I’ve been sitting here reading all the comments and crying for all the brave people here who have suffered at the hands of rapists and I really admire how brave you are to share your stories (Kate and ostara321). I’ve been there myself, but don’t really like to talk about the specific experiences much, but I have no sympathy for rapists and am vocal about how wrong rape apology is.
I was so disgusted by the media responses to the verdict and the victim-blaming and the slut shaming that I had to shut down my computer and go away for a while for the rage I felt. Rape apology and victim-blaming has got to stop and it only will if people speak out, but sometimes the anger is so strong that I think I’m going to burst. So what if the girl was drunk? It doesn’t give ANYONE the right to rape her. It’s not her fault, it never was and it never will be. It is the fault of the two little wastes of space that raped her (they got off too lightly, in my opinion) and all the other shit stains who stood by and let it happen and thought it was funny. Those are the people who should be shamed and punished, not the victim. I’m just glad to hear that others are likely going to be held accountable and threats against the victim are being taken seriously.
As someone else stated, I greatly admire the bravery of the victim in this. It took a lot of courage to follow through and see this to the end and I too hope she can find healing and peace. I wish the same for anyone who has lived through such trauma and pain. I know from personal experience one never really gets over it entirely, and it stays with you for the rest of your life.
@bengalcatmum
Hugs if you want them. I’m so sorry. (I have some really nice tissues with lotion, too, if you like that sort of thing.)
Bengalcatmum - hugs if you want them.
Cassandra - “Summer is that one day in July when it hits 70.”
Charles I is supposed to have said once that the English summer consisted of three fine days followed by a thunderstorm. Significantly, he didn’t mention Scottish summers (and him an expat Scot, too).
Cute ponies! Cute fox! Cutenesssssssssss!
I too fled the Scottish weather. The unremitting grey drizzle was too much. Breathtakingly beautiful winter days but bitterly cold.
My one lengthy visit to Edinburgh (thirteen years back) featured lots of misty rain and chilly days, but put on a raincoat or rain poncho and it was instant sauna time. Very odd.
For outright cold, though, the daytrips took the prize. Can’t remember where it was, but at one viewing stop it was so windy people had to hang on to things just to stay in one place, and I saw a bird flying backwards. Urquhart Castle was perishing cold, too - no wonder, the wind ripping off the loch.
Kitteh, lol. It may well be a made up story, and I’ve never checked it, but I was once told there is significant land mass between Edinburgh and Siberia. So when the wind whistles in from the east, it carries Siberian chill with it.
NO significant land mass, dammit.
@Cassandra:
Like, Vancouver Vancouver? Or Vancouver Island? Because there actually is some pretty nice weather on the island. And Vancouver itself is nicer than most of the country, assuming you really hate sunlight. Perfect for vampires!
Still, if we’re living on a communal dream island of Manboobz fun I think I’d rather leave this frozen wasteland of a country. Let’s go somewhere warm, please! It’s snowed every day since Saturday here and I DO NOT WANT.
Ooh hey, we (me and partner) are planning on visiting Scotland this year! We’re thinking probably September, because the flight costs are just so much higher in summer. I figure, it wouldn’t be fun to travel around in the depths of winter, but we tough Canadian stock (XD) can handle a September that sounds very much like our own, except rainier and less erratic.
Scotland sounds like a colder Seattle. Makes sense, as the weather in London when I was there was almost identical to the PNW.
On the notion of Manboobz Island…
Bah, I say. Rather than fleeing to an island, I propose we claim the entirety of the North American continent (lots of different climates to choose from, then) and drive the MRAs, PUAs, rape-apologists and all the other misogynistic lackwits into the sea, like St. Patrick driving the snakes from Ireland.
Sibera has a fair bit of land between it and Scotland… Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, France. That, actually, is why the winds from Siberia (such as the Mistral) is so cold. The same winds in Calif. are either hot, or cold,. depending on time of year, because they come over the desert.
Our cold winds (when it’s cold, it’s really fucking cold) in Central TX are directly from Canada. Thanks, guys!
This won’t interfere with the sailing will it? I’m dreaming of sailing off Manboobz Island. With a ship’s cat, of course.
This won’t interfere with the sailing will it? I’m dreaming of sailing off Manboobz Island. With a ship’s cat, of course.
It will improve the sailing! The water’s density will rise and make everything float better. ^^
Pfft, Hellkell. The winds from Canada have had plenty of timre to warm up before they hit Texas.
=p
Out here, the cold air comes straight off Lake Michigan. Along with snow. We regularly get an extra inch or three from lake effect.
@Bagelsan Nah, it should just mean the fishing will be pretty good, what with all that chum floating around.
As long as you clean the fish really good; I don’t want any trace MRA particles in my food!
On the other hand, Dean Norris (Hank Schrader from Breaking Bad) clearly does not fuck around when it comes to talking about current issues.
http://i.imgur.com/MKpIpXs.png
Go, Hank!
The funny thing is, I can totally imagine Hank saying something like that in-show. Does Dean Norris have the exact same personality as Hank Schrader in real life? Because that would be really awesome if he does.
@Sideliner
Maybe it’s just my cynicism about sports culture (and men in general /misandry), but given that he didn’t punish them and tried to cover it up and just generally failed to be a decent human being around this, I kind of wonder if he didn’t do some of the same shit in his glory days. Plenty of athletic golden boys do.
@Gillian
publicshaming.tumblr.com
Right now, it’s even worse than David’s posts on Steubenville, so GIANT TRIGGER WARNING.
That terrible Michael Crook guy has taken his Twitter account private.
@Viscaria - September’s a pretty good time to visit the UK in general. That’s when I was there all three visits. It’s the shoulder period for prices, but not as frantically busy in the touristy spots, much easier to get a decent hotel or whatever, and the weather’s still reasonable. Definitely don’t do Scotland in winter; apart from anything else, opening hours of tourist places (castles and such) are much shorter, or they may be closed altogether. Plus of course there’s much less daylight for doing anything!
Re: Manboobz Island: I live in Vancouver (the city) and while I love the weather here (it hardly ever snows in winter except that one year a few years back which I contemplated moving south because it just wouldn’t stop!), it’s not for the sun loving crowd. I just hate snow and, being Canadian, I decided Vancouver was my new home, rather than Toronto (where I used to live) because I just hate snow that much (I do miss aspects about Toronto though).
Viscaria, my mum and I are heading off to Scotland in August this year (her birthday is in August). My grandma was from there and mum wants to go to see where grandma was born and do a bit of looking into family history.
And to those who offered hugs and lotion infused tissues, thank you. This is an awesome and tremendous community and I’ve learned a lot from all of you. Thank you for that.
@Pecunium, I figured you’d be better informed than geographically lazy me. I think the myth they were spruiking was that there was no big mountainy things in the way and that Edinburgh and Siberia are on the same latitude? It’s one of those things we tell tourists along with stuff about 3 legged haggis.
@Viscaria, May and September are the best times to go, the weather is usually pretty good and the days are a decent length. In summer, the sun is out by 3am approx and down by about 11pm (we are talking full on daylight at 10pm). In the winter, it’s pitch black until 9am and dark again by 3pm. I imagine some of the North American Manboobzers experience the same but Aussies generally react in shock to that info.
@bengalcatmum….August means the Edinburgh Festival Fringe! Best time to be in that city (apart from zillions of tourists and inflated prices)
@BigMomma: Here in Tennessee, in the depths of winter the sun might rise at 7:30 and set by 5:30, while in the summer, it’s usually up around 6 and lingers until 9 pm for a couple of days at the latest.
This is all so incredibly gross, although I wish I was more surprised by it all…
OK - back to reading from behind the lurker shadows again!
@kate: Thanks so much for your conscientious, kind response. This clearly doesn’t excuse my thoughtlessness yesterday, but in retrospect it’s clear that I was super triggered and didn’t realize it, and so I was doing my usual defensive technique and intellectualizing in a really unhelpful way.
I talked to feminist friends, I watched that video where the beagle really wants the cabbage, and that plus your accepting of my apology have caused me to think about things more clearly and avoid it in the future. Thanks again; this community is cool.
Yutolia — we have hard misandrist chairs, matching bath towels and SCENTED MOTHERFUCKING CANDLES, available by delivery via female (whore) penguins in spanx, should you decide to stick around! We like our delurkers!
O_O wow… Very enlightening comparison. I hate rape apologists >:(
Meh, I’m really late to this so probably not saying anything that hasn’t been said.
But where the hell were this girl’s friends that night? There wasn’t one single person at that party who intervened to stop this. She had to rely on a group of anonymous internet hackers to have her voice heard because her entire community turned on her. That part’s upsetting me nearly as much as the assault. More than two people need to be brought to justice for this
I feel so bad for her if she has to keep on living in this place for another two years, if she’s only 16. Seems like her ordeal isn’t going to be over for a while yet.
Ugh, and NO. Getting off-your-face drunk does not magically turn otherwise decent people into mindless rapists. These vile, entitled little shits had been led to believe by this community that they could get away with whatever the hell they wanted, and the tears came when they realised that they are not above the law. He was not crying for her.
Welcome, Anna, if you haven’t posted before!
And what you said can’t be said too often.
Hello! I post very rarely (mostly I lurk), but I haven’t been around for months. Sometimes I just feel like it’s better for my mental wellbeing to not read about this crap at all, you know? Even if it’s being mocked hilariously.
Thanks for the welcome though
I do miss the fact that it’s light out till so late in the summer in Scotland. Not enough to deal with having to wear a coat in May, though.
Understandable, Anna! I tend to skim the posts and head for the comments a lot of the time. Especially when the magnificent non-troll derails are under way.
Clearly, Manboobz Island needs to be a magical floating island with teleporters.
I mean… duh!
But of course!
Ha, wrote this comment last evening and just left it sitting in the comment box XD.
@BigMomma:
Huh! I am so terrible at geography that I automatically assumed my home town would be north of most of Scotland, but nope. I appreciate the warning!
I’m so so so excited though. I hope you are too, bengalcatmum, for your trip!
Welcome Anna! Well, welcome to commenting more. Please do stay, people are awesome here.
And I hope you enjoy Scotland, my Father is Scottish so I’ve been up there a fair bit visiting family.
And if any other Manboobzers are thinking of visiting the UK can I recommend York?
I’m biased as I’m living there for University but it’s full of history, Roman, Medieval, Georgian, Victorian, right up to the 20th century.
It’s also gorgeous and has really great shops and restaurants etc.
Oops, that comment was partly aimed at Viscaria!
Way late, but the rather crass comparison between the Steubenville sentence and what hackers get has been going around on twitter because of a recent Anon sentence…people are bitter in other words. Trust me here, Cthulu’s Intern wasn’t pulling rape apologia, but bemoaning the BS of DMCA and similar. Epic story short, this sentence and one for hacking related crimes came down basically at the same time…the later is longer, and that’s fucked because fucking clearly rape is worse.
Am I making sense pre-coffee? Point I’m trying to make is that it’s fucked up when sentences go rape < hacking, when severity wise rape > hacking. And Anon and friends are bitter over both sentences and probably not being as clear as possible…sorry if I’m not explaining any better…
Footnote: they should be getting the decade+ that Aaron Swartz was facing.
@Argenti
I think Marie was hating the attitudes toward rape that lead to shorter sentences, not accusing the person who made the comparison of being a rape apologist.
Ok, that makes more sense. Particularly now that I have coffee!
Sorry for my misplaced comment then! Because yes, longer sentences for hacking/piracy than rape are bullshit.
Actually, piracy law is bull in its own right, but that’s neither here nor that, and a personal opinion for um…personal reasons!
yeah, that was it. I wasn’t trying to accuse the person I quoted of being a rape apologist
Though I was awfully unclear. Sorry.
No, it was my mistake. Pre-coffee Argenti (particularly post seroquel sleeping pill) is foggy.
Steubenville and the toxic attitudes are mentioned in this excellent piece in The Age today:
http://www.theage.com.au/comment/rapists-are-criminals-not-just-boys-being-boys-20130320-2gftm.html