The New York Times owes someone an apology

Oh hey, look at that, a real post for once.

So, first off, regardless of your background, this post is going to make you a little bit sick to the stomach. If your background includes certain varieties of ptsd, it’ll definitely include absolutely enormous triggers regarding rape. So if that’s a problem, just saying, this isn’t a light and fluffy thing I’m talking about today.

Earlier today, the New York Times reported on an extremely horrific crime in a small Texas community. The crime in question? The gang rape of an 11 year old girl by 18 boys/men. Here’s the actual article, behind one of their charming registration walls of course.

The article tries for a neutral tone, and to be totally honest, I don’t know if it’s going for neutrality-as-a-smokescreen or neutrality-out-of-soul-killing-naivete, either way, reading that article will treat you to an entire page of quotes and insinuations about how it’s the 11 year old’s fault (because of how she dressed, and because she hung out with teenagers), or about how it’s her mother’s fault (for not knowing where she was, and not knowing who she was hanging out with).

An 11 year old girl. Raped by 18 men. Who’s to blame here?

Look, that question on the previous line was a trick question. It’s a troll trap. Who’s to blame here? THE RAPISTS. I MEAN COME ON. DUH. But what does the NYT focus on? Pull quotes about how those poor boys will have to live with it for the rest of their lives. Who gives a shit what they have to live with? They gang raped an 11 year old girl.

Seriously. You can’t make this shit up. They raped her. They filmed it on fucking cellphone cameras. THEY BRAGGED ABOUT IT AT SCHOOL (the age range of the RAPISTS was middleschool up to 27 years old).

Rape is always rape. There aren’t “Degrees” of rape. There are no small rapes, no harmless rapes. I try to explain that to people, but you get a lot of resistance. Still, I thought THIS kind of crime was at least a little bit cut-and-dry. Sort of an easy case, you know? Not complicated?

If you feel, as I do, that the New York Times owes the victim of this crime an apology, please sign the petition from Change.org.

SOD.

—

Thanks to Maco for pointing this one out. Or thanks-ish. I’m glad I can say something about it, but miserable that it’s necessary.