Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Rape victims denied compensation  

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Just came across this appalling article about several rape victims getting less compensation because they were consuming alcohol during the time they were attacked. The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority has denied 14 rape victims in the past year a significant portion of their deserved monetary compensation because they believed that the alcohol was a "contributing factor in the incident."

Ludicrous. It is never the fault of the victim in a rape and sexual assault situation, and thus no rape victim should be denied full compensation. Every woman deserves the right to drink alcohol without having to worry about being dragged into a bedroom by a pervert. And even if alcohol was involved in the situation, who's to say that it "contributed" to it? What if the victim had her drink spiked? It only takes one roofied drink to knock someone on their ass, so in that situation the alcohol doesn't even matter.

Sometimes people are irresponsible with drinking - I won't deny that. But many rape cases are completely unavoidable; a woman might take all the necessary precautions, such as drinking in moderation and keeping friends close the entire night, but a rapist will find a way to get her into a bedroom. Let's steer clear of victim-blaming, shall we?

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