A few weeks ago, a firestorm of epic proportions erupted online over a post Emily Yoffe (Dear Prudence) published on Salon about the connection between binge drinking and rape. Many accused Ms. Yoffe of “victim-blaming.” The maddening result of the backlash was that bloggers and pundits seemed reticent to talk about this plain, sorry fact: most date rape situations involve a lot of alcohol for both males and females. To me, there is a distinction between defensive strategies and shifting responsibility for a crime onto its victim. We simply must discuss this connection between drinking and rape with both men and women.
My mere suggestion of this in a Facebook post dusted up a mini-storm of my own and caused me to rant a bit about it here on PurpleCar (NSFW if you mind a minor swear word that has to do with hitting fans). A few weeks later, I attended the core seminar at The OpEd Project, where writer Amy Gutman was presenting. Amy said that she was working on a related article to come out in the coming weeks. Amy’s article is posted today, and it is awash with links that will catch you up on the royal, but hopefully ultimately useful, mess. I think Amy’s middle ground is the exact practical approach we need to move forward. Check it out:
.
Thanks, Amy!