Following the confirmation of accused alleged rapist Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, the outrage over Sen. Susan Collins’ long-winded defense of her “yes” vote continues. After saying that she “believed” that something terrible had happened to his accuser, Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, Collins insisted that she could not be sure that she really believed her when she said she was 100 percent sure her attacker was Kavanaugh.
Collins’ explanation made no sense. Minimizing sexual assault makes no sense, either, and its a prevalent part of the conversation around sexual assault.
Lawyer for adult film star Stormy Daniels, Michael Avenatti, has repeatedly called out Collins and others who minimized the testimony of Dr. Ford, the ones who held to the mistaken identity defense. At a high school in Leesburg, Virginia, implications regarding the failure to quickly and properly respond to allegations of sexual assault became clear.
‘Leesburg Police Department officials have confirmed they are investigating an incident at Tuscarora, but they aren’t disclosing any details of inquiry. The Times-Mirror first reported the sexual assault allegationon Tuesday. Sources with knowledge of the incident say a football player was held down by other players while another inserted something into the victim on Oct. 1…
‘According to an LCPS statement, the school became aware of the incident Oct. 5. Five days later, after the Times-Mirror report and ensuing outrage on social media, the school system issued a statement to the public.’
In that statement, the school insisted that they did not inform parents, their faculty, or their staff to “preserve the integrity of the investigation.”
‘To preserve the integrity of the investigation by Leesburg police – and due to federal laws protecting student privacy – LCPS is limited as to what it can share with the public.
‘At this point in the investigation, Leesburg police have not determined what charges, if any, will be sought regarding this incident.
‘The Leesburg Police Department continues to monitor this situation. The Leesburg Police Department is committed to providing more resources to Tuscarora should they be needed.
‘Federal law prohibits LCPS from revealing disciplinary consequences involving students. School Board policy sets discipline consequences, including expulsion, for very serious infractions.’
Many parents and Leesburg residents feel that the rush to keep the story quiet has put other students in danger and failed to allow parents to make a decision regarding the safety of sending their child to school. One teacher said:
‘I understand it’s a very touchy subject, especially with the climate in our culture with sexual assault now, but there’s still a courtesy to a body of your faculty and staff who would like your direction and leadership on how exactly to handle the conversations obviously happening in the classrooms and hallways with the students’
The statement released by the school, many felt, was also insufficient. The mention of possible expulsion, not “students who rape other students in our school will absolutely be barred from ever entering our school grounds again,” was a particular point of contention.
Twitter responded in full force, with many saying that those who minimize and cover up these accounts are equally part of the problem as the assaulters themselves. Read some of their comments below:
Featured image screenshot via YouTube
