Doing Feminism: Another Woman Assaulted by the Garneau Rapist
Lise Gotell
· 1 year ago
As always, Derek, you rock. I am doing an interview with cbc re. this tomorrow. Extremely good point re. construction of the sisterhood as threat. Lise
Dan
· 1 year ago
Er... I don't quite understand what you're saying here. I don't really get why advising women to protect themselves is.... a bad thing. I sure as hell would hope that the neighborhood is letting the women of this area know of the danger, and letting them know of ways they can make themselves safer, such as yes, locking their doors and perhaps acting with caution around strange men. I am compeltely lost on how this is wrong or unacceptable. I mean, what would you have the neighborhood do? Encourage women to throw open their doors when there is a serial rapist prowling the streets? Honestly, I would call any police force that does this incompetent and negligent. I mean, if there was a murderer roaming around, I would expect and hope the neighborhood to post warnings advising both men and women to be on the lookout for strangers, be in by a certain time, etc.
Yes, this sick serial rapist is to blame for... his own rape crimes... um, I don't think anyone in their right mind would dispute that. But this is not victim-blaming, it's an attempt to prevent more women from becoming victims of a non-negotiable person.
Dan
· 1 year ago
I also don't see the alleged victim-blaming in Mr. Gelinas' article; I do see his advice to women to "lock their doors" and "be on the lookout", but again, I don't see how this can possibly be construed as victim-blaming- it's advice to women on how to protect themselves.
Richmond
· 1 year ago
"It is not the responsibility of women to protect themselves. Rapists may commit the action, but the rape culture is to blame, and men perpetuate it."
I agree. Sometimes women are blame for the act because they are "wearing provocative dress," 'they were promiscous anyway" or something like that. But what people do not realize it that when we start saying this, we are just justifying the rapist, right. I am the only son in four siblings, and I do worry a lot for my sisters whenever they are out. Kudos to you.
Vlug Fietsen
· 1 year ago
Let us all reflect on something more concrete as an example of EXACTLY what is being discussed here. Perhaps we can all learn something from someone who has an ability to put these complaints into words that are clear, thus making it an understandable part of this current topic we are discussing .... Hey just thought of something.... perhaps the RcMP and our Edmonton City Police ought to buy this book. (I have tendency to ramble on as well, though mostly due to being an angry victim of rape and torture) it took years of counselling before I had my eyes open.) Quote; Defensive Attribution ... (quote form; “Psychology Themes And Variations” by Wayne Weiten 2001. In attempting to explain the calamities and setbacks that befall other people, an observer's tendency to make internal attributions may become even stronger than normal. Let's say that a friend gets mugged and severely beaten. You may attribute the You mugging to your friend's carelessness or stupidity ("He should have known better than to be in that neighbourhood at that time") rather than to bad luck. Why? Because if you attribute your friend's misfortune to bad luck, you have to face the ugly reality that it could just as easily happen to you. To avoid disturbing thoughts such as these, people often attribute mishaps to victims' negligence (Salminen, 1992; Thornton, 1984, 1992). Defensive attribution is a tendency to blame victims for their misfortune, so that one feels less likely to be victimized in a similar way. Hindsight bias probably contributes to this tendency, but blaming victims also helps people maintain their belief that they live in a just world, where they're unlikely to experience similar troubles 1999). The bias toward making defensive attributions can have unfortunate consequences. Blaming victims for their setbacks causes them to be seen in a negative light, and undesirable traits are unfairly attributed to them. Thus, it is assumed that burglary victims must be careless, that people who get fired must be incompetent, that poor people must be lazy, that RAPE VICTIMS MUST BE SEDUCTIVE ("She probably asked for it”), and so on... As you can see, DEFENSIVE ATTRIBUTION can lead to unwarranted derogation of victims of misfortune.
hysperia
· 1 year ago
Forward to Derek: I let loose a bit here and talked to the cops and everyone else, through you. We've talked about this asshat rapist and the police before and, having lived through a situation very similar to this with a friend, it leaves me furious to see it being replayed.
Well look, if women know the rapist is around and they have a good enough profile, I'm sure they well know how to protect themselves. Guess why? BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO DO IT 24/7 ALL THE TIME! They hardly need to be told to lock their doors and windows for feck sake. Are they CHILDREN? Some people, like cops, many men and newspaper reporters who want to feel as though they're doing something but who aren't really doing anything, like to think so. It makes everything so much easier. Don't waste your energy, boys, telling women how to live. FOCUS ON THE RAPIST AND ON EMPOWERING WOMEN. Involve women in your investigation. BIG TIME! Women have the experience, they know their neighbourhoods and they can often give you a lot of information about men who rape. Publish as much detail about this rapist as you can. It won't undermine your investigation. It will enhance it. There are men and women out there you will recognize something about this man and they will turn him in or report something helpful to police. Most serial rapists are caught due to some small thing that slips them up. Create more opportunities for him to slip up. Cops shouldn't view the information as their private property so that they can claim the credit if and when they make a credible arrest. This is a community problem and requires a community solution. Let all the women and men of the community participate. ENCOURAGE all the women and men of the community to participate. Women certainly aren't responsible for rapists, but they do want to stop them from hurting each other as much as anyone else; probably more, unfortunately.
And for cripes sake, DON'T accuse women such as those of the Garneau Sisterhood of being threatening vigilantes. These are women who give a great big shit and are exercising their powerful right to protect their community, they're not rapists and murderers! In the past, actions by community women have been instrumental in catching rapists and alerting the community to the things that MIGHT REALLY HELP. They're your friends, stupid. They know what they're doing because they take it seriously and know that locking doors and closing windows DOESN'T CATCH RAPISTS! What if it's too hot to close the windows? Heat stroke is the choice?
I can just hear the chatter after a woman is raped now: "Oh that's too bad but geez, what a stupid woman, she had an open window; oh, she forgot to lock her door, HOW COULD SHE? Gimme a break.
madmonq
· 1 year ago
I am not trying to be confrontational or ignorant. I believe the men are responsible for the crime. But can you please explain why oh why a woman should not know how to defend herself? It is not morally wrong in any way for them to do so.
Holly
· 1 year ago
That second picture really got me, I love it. I especially love at the bottom it says 'The sisterhood is watching!' People need to unite, that is the only way we are going to succeed and rape is going to stop. We need to unite and just like the sign says, when one woman is raped it is a rape of all women; it is an injustice to all women.
monika
· 1 year ago
Excellent post.
Madmonq, when we focus on the behaviour of women we are not focusing on the behaviour of those who perpetrate violence against women. We are suggesting that there is something that a woman can do to prevent sexual assault when in fact the only person who decides whether or not a sexual assault occurs is the offender.
There is no right or wrong way for a woman (or man) to respond to being sexually assaulted. Whatever the person does to survive is the "rigth thing".
I don't like the idea of suggesting that women should know how to defend themselves because 1) It suggests that there is a "correct" way to respond to being sexually assaulted. We don't know how we will respond when being sexually assaulted; many people "freeze" and this is a perfectly valid response, 2) It once again focuses on the behaviour of the woman versus the perpetrator.
I don't think any of us (feminists, anti-violence activists) are suggesting it is WRONG for a woman to do what she needs to feel safe and/or survive a sexual assault. Rather, we are challenging the typical focus on the woman's behaviour and saying rather it should be on the perpetrator and his actions, as well as a society which condones and perpetuates violence against women.
GRad
· 1 year ago
^^ monika, I think your argument falls apart when we consider that the man committing these acts is an unreasonable criminal. Yes, the offender commits the assault, but he is obviously not going to stop, no matter how many flyers or informational meetings we provide imploring him to do so. All this about the "rape culture" is irrelevant when we consider that there IS a rapist on the loose, there IS NOTHING WE CAN DO to get him to stop aside from CATCHING HIM.
I say again, if there was a murderer prowling the streets, I would expect the police and others to provide guidelines for everyone- man or woman- to follow to protect themselves from becoming a victim. Does this mean we are "blaming the people" or "focusing on the victim's actions"? Of course not. We are trying to give people the means to protect themselves from an unreasonable person.
If there was a pedophile on the loose, we would ask parents to have their kids in by a certain time and encourage parents to keep close taps on their teens. Are we blaming the children, then?
monika
· 1 year ago
It goes beyond just this rapist, however. We live in a culture that perpetuates rape, that blames victims, that uses the word "rape" in contexts such as "I just raped this exam". By focusing exclusively on this perp, we are ignoring the majority of offenders/sexual assaults as well as the reasons that sexual violence occurs.
The majority of sexual assaults are perpetrated by someone the victim knows - family, "friends", partners. Stranger rapists get high profiles in the media but they are by no means the most common.
I have worked in this field for the past decade, and I have seen firsthand how "tips" impact survivors. Individuals who have been victimized by sexual violence are impacted by "tips" in that they believe that they are somehow at fault, that they "contributed" to the sexual assault.
In regards to your parallel to murder victims, I believe that people who have been murdered are for the most part treated very different than those who have been sexual assaulted. (I say for the most part because people who work in the sex trade, for example, are often blamed for their victimization).
As for pedophiles on the loose, there ARE pedophiles on the loose. And these pedophiles are most often people the children know. Stranger Danger campaigns do little to help children who are being abused by people they love and trust.
On a side note, I am frustrated that with the media exposure of this offender, there is not accompanying information for all survivors on where to get support. This media exposure can be very triggering for individuals and families impacted by sexual violence, and it is important to let the community know that there are agencies out there which provide non-judgmental support to survivors of sexual violence.
The Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton provides a 24 hour crisis line (780 423 4121) and counselling and education services. The U of A Sexual Assault Centre also provides support and information (780-492-9771). SAFFRON: Strathcona Sexual Assault Centre (780 449 0900) also provides counselling and support.
GRad
· 1 year ago
I understand what you're saying, I think. But I'm referring to serial cases- such as this one, in which there is a person out there repeatedly assaulting seemingly random women. Because of this one guy, the danger of rape has suddenly spiked in this particular area, and, considering this man would be a stranger, there are very clear guidelines that women can follow to lower the likelihood of themselves becoming a victim- at least until the high danger has passed.
If the Garneau neighborhood was not in a crisis right now, then I would agree that we ought not to post these guidelines, as they refer specifically to strangers. But there is a time when that must be put aside- certain "red alert" situations in which guidelines such as these are appropriate.
Bridget
· 1 year ago
The reality is that telling women to protect themselves does not address the cause of the crime. If an offender is breaking into homes, how does telling women to stay off the streets or even lock up their homes help if the offender is forcibly gaining entry? And telling women what they must do to "prevent" rape places the accountability for the crime on the survivors, rather than the perpetrators. For the women who've been through this experience, this tells them that society sees this as their fault.
In reality, the rate of sexual assault in the city has not significantly increased because of this offender being on the loose. Sexual assault occurs every single day, and 85% of victims know their assailant. Telling women to avoid strangers and find someone to protect them doesn't help, since they are most likely to be assaulted by someone they know and trust. The sad reality is that there is far more danger from acquaintances, friends, partners and family members than there ever is from a stranger on the street.
And the notion that "Sometimes women are blame for the act because they are “wearing provocative dress,” ‘they were promiscous anyway” or something like that" is false. Dressing in a given manner or even seeking sex is not the same as looking to be sexually assaulted. Whether a woman has many consensual sexual experiences or none has nothing to do with her right to bodily autonomy and personal safety. Every person has the right to say no. And women are assaulted in sweatpants or pyjamas, not just miniskirts. When perpetrators are interviewed and are asked what the victim was wearing, they generally cannot recall a single detail of the survivor's clothing, not even the colour.
In reality, tips are a way of controlling women's lives, not preventing sexual assault. If we really were interested in stopping men from assaulting women, we'd tell men that they shouldn't go out alone at night, seeing as that's when the perpetrator is committing these crimes. Why are we controlling the actions of potential targets and not potential offenders? Seems a little backwards to me.
pheenobarbidoll
· 1 year ago
GRad:
There are some very easy guidelines men could adhere to until the "high" danger has passed.
Such as but not limited to
Staying indoors after 6pm
Only leaving the house with a buddy
Since the rapist in question is a man, then men can be the ones restricted to safety guidelines.
Also, having a list of things women "should" do to be safe means you now have a list of things to use against a woman if the rapist succeeds in attacking her.
A woman doesn't fail to protect herself, the rapist succeeds in raping her.
Jezebella
· 1 year ago
It seems to me that these articles with "safety tips" are only so much Security Theater. Reminding women to lock our doors is about as practical as forcing airline travelers to remove their shoes for scanning. It is an absolute waste of time, and it gives the appearance that those in authority are Doing Something Useful. Safety Tips of this sort are in fact, Not Useful. We have heard them a thousand times, we practice the kind of daily security that your average man cannot *possibly* imagine, and yet women are still being raped and assaulted.
It also, as others have noted, focused on women's behavior instead of men's, as though we are at fault when we have not followed the safety tips. Should we do so, we would essentially live at home under house arrest wearing a muumuu. This is not acceptable. I second Pheenobarbidoll's suggestion that men's movements should be limited until such time as it is safe for women to leave the house when men are out and about. It's really the only logical solution.
intransigentia
· 1 year ago
[quote]Should we do so, we would essentially live at home under house arrest wearinga muumuu[/quote]
Still wouldn't be good enough. The asshole is, after all, gaining access to women inside their homes, and muumuus are easy access garments. If we really want to be safe we'll need to lock ourselves in bank vaults while wearing space suits. Anything else would be half-measures that a sufficiently determined individual could conceivably break through.
What we as women really need - short of the obvious catching the rapist and changing culture so rape is unthinkable - is information that would let us react to /the specific situation/ instead of an amorphous terror. Which, incidentally, would probably also help the public tip off the police to catch him. Stuff like what time of day he has been striking and how he gains entry to homes. Whether there have been suspicious person reports preceding the attacks, and what the suspicious person was doing. Whether he travels on foot or bike or car. A description of the perp beyond "5'9" and wearing dark clothing". A description of his vehicle if he has one.
A public armed with that kind of information might be a bit less "not my problem" when they see a stranger up to something not quite usual, if they knew what they were looking for, and call the cops more readily.
GRad
· 1 year ago
[quote]We practice the kind of security that men cannot *possibly* imagine{/quote}
I disagree.
pheeno:
Your post does not make sense. For one, the guidelines that have been posted are NOT restrictions, they are simply advisements. There is no law that says women HAVE to lock their doors, be in by 6pm, etc. They are simply things that women can CHOOSE to abide by to possibly lower their chances of becoming a victim of the rapist.
Your suggestion about the "guidelines for men" is a bit ridiculous. Ignoring the fact that it would be unconstitutional, as I said before, they would not in fact be restrictions. By all means, post these guidelines for men as well; it would be useless, though, because men would not be required to abide by them and very few would CHOOSE to- since they are in no danger and they would KNOW they themselves are not the Garneau rapist. Certainly the rapist himself wouldn't abide by these guidelines.
When you say that "having a list of things, for women to do gives the rapist something to use against her", what do you mean? I'm not really sure how a woman locking her door would give the assaulter a "weapon" against her. How exactly would he "use this against her?"
Furthermore, I completely disagree that this serial rapist has NOT raised the danger of assault in this relatively small neighborhood. Furthermore, disregarding this, the danger of assault BY A STRANGER has certainly spiked. With this understood, there are very, very clear guidelines that women can CHOOSE to apply to help lower the chances of assault BY A STRANGER.
For the third time, this is being treated no differently than a murder case. Women are the only ones in danger here, so guidelines are being targeted as- GASP- women!
Jezebella
· 1 year ago
"[quote]We practice the kind of security that men cannot *possibly* imagine{/quote}
I disagree."
How nice for you.
If you are a man, you really have no idea what we face, what kind of calculus of security we engage every single day of our lives, whether there's a serial rapist in town or not. You may "disagree", but you're still lacking a clue. Which is evidenced by your absolute inability to see how the media focus on women's behaviour is victim-blaming hogwash. It's time for the media to focus on men's behaviour - and how the serial rapist's is on the same continuum as grab-assing, verbal harassment, violent pornography, and acquaintance rape. It is merely an escalation of the more usual fare, which doesn't get nearly the media attention it should. Why? Because women are blamed and blamed again for the crimes perpetrated against them, from the "minor" to the fatal. Men, on the other hand, are rarely, if ever, encouraged to question their complicity in a culture in which sexual violence is so prevalent.
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
How about you address the actual body of my post inside of focusing on a random aside, hmm?
I disagree based on lifetime observation. Women face an elevated risk of sexual assault, but to say that you engage in "security" that is "beyond my imagination" daily, is quite simply ludicrous.
Get over yourself.
hysperia
· 1 year ago
And you Hobbes, if you were truly interested in engaging in a respectful conversation with women and feminists, WOULD GO READ A FUCKING BOOK before you try, because you're much too ignorant for it right now. Try Feminism 101. If you're really interested. Which I doubt very much.
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
Yet again, I see no response to the body of my arguement, which is typical of feminists.
Bridget
· 1 year ago
Dude, if you have a problem with how feminists discuss things, how about you stop trolling feminist sites?
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
...
... I'm not trolling. I spent a solid amount of time typing up a well-thought-out response to reasoning that I find flawed. As a response all I get is snide comments directed at minor points (jezebella) and statements such as "ur ignorant lol" and "u dunt no wut ur talking about haha!" Who's trolling again?
I'm sorry if I came off as rude, but it's frustrating.
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
By the way, I am GRad, in case that wasn't clear.
monika
· 1 year ago
GRad,
What "prevention" tips do you believe are helpful to women?
monika
· 1 year ago
By the way, GRad, there have been many "well thought out" responses to your posts. Whether or not you agree with them, that is another thing.
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
This is ridiculous.
Since the last post I made as "GRad" (the 26th), I have recieved:
a. a snide comment from Jezebella directed at exactly two words in my original post, completely skipping the main body;
b. a comment from hysperia telling me to "read a book";
c. a comment from Bridget telling me to "stop trolling";
d. and yours.
Why don't you start telling me exactly why I am so wrong and ignorant?
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
Oh, and I would say that the tips the police are providing in this case are appropriate.
I personally would advise women to be on the lookout for suspicious people, especially at night (I would also extend this to men, simply because they should be reporting anything suspicious; however, since women would be the ones in danger it's especially important for them). Perhaps suggesting a curfew is a little unrealistic, but I would certainly suggest that women lock their doors, if they aren't doing so already. People likely lock their doors anyway- just because it's a good idea in general- but under the current circumstances it's more important for women- especially women living alone. Locking one's door is kind of a "duh" move, but to be especially safe I would suggest (just suggest), that women lock their windows, unless it makes the house too warm or something like that.
I really am baffled as to how anyone could find offense in what I have just said.
hysperia
· 1 year ago
You are simply, totally offensive. You're rude, condescending, arrogant and suitably baffled. Anyone who chose to take more than a few minutes to engage with you would be WASTING THEIR TIME.
Women should lock their doors? Wow. That's the most original solution to the problem of rape I've ever heard. lol your nuts
Hobbes
· 1 year ago
I am acting "rude" because I have been treated with derision and dismissiveness for daring to point out the gaping, massive flaws in your logic.
You miss the point entirely with your second paragraph, as per usual. I have never claimed to have some kind of "formula" for avoiding rape. However, locking one's doors- among other precautions- is a simple and easy method to reduce risk IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE. And for some reason, you and others here find it offensive that the police or other media should make this- among other precautions- known to the general public. That is what this whole debate is about, nothing else. To say that "that's the most original solution to rape I have ever heard" is completely off the mark and utterly irrelevent. Just because it isn't "original" dooesn't mean it can't help. And you and the others seem to have a problem with the public knowing this. THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MEN OR WOMEN. THIS IS ABOUT GIVING A GROUP OF PEOPLE THE KNOWLEDGE TO REDUCE THE RISK OF BECOMING THE VICTIM OF A PERSON THAT HAS TARGETED THEM.
Get off your high horse. This isn't feminist politics, this is about keeping human beings safe.
hysperia
· 1 year ago
Feminist politics IS about keeping human beings safe. Women being ... yes ... you've GOT it ... HUMAN BEINGS. That would be autonomous human beings ... often ADULTS ... who do not need to be told to lock their doors and windows you humongous, flying spaghetti monster concern troll. I really, really LIKE it up here on my high horse and I ain't climbin' down. When's the last time you left your DOOR open? This response is simply, clearly, absolutely INSULTING and INFANTILIZING. And it's meant to make concerned trolls like you feel like you're doing something when you're actually doing ABSOLUTELY zip-all NADDA NOTHING. This has EVERYTHING to do with men and women. If rape isn't about feminist politics, what in the name of all that's good and lovely do you think feminist politics is about?
All Comments
Yes, this sick serial rapist is to blame for... his own rape crimes... um, I don't think anyone in their right mind would dispute that. But this is not victim-blaming, it's an attempt to prevent more women from becoming victims of a non-negotiable person.
I agree. Sometimes women are blame for the act because they are "wearing provocative dress," 'they were promiscous anyway" or something like that. But what people do not realize it that when we start saying this, we are just justifying the rapist, right. I am the only son in four siblings, and I do worry a lot for my sisters whenever they are out. Kudos to you.
Well look, if women know the rapist is around and they have a good enough profile, I'm sure they well know how to protect themselves. Guess why? BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO DO IT 24/7 ALL THE TIME! They hardly need to be told to lock their doors and windows for feck sake. Are they CHILDREN? Some people, like cops, many men and newspaper reporters who want to feel as though they're doing something but who aren't really doing anything, like to think so. It makes everything so much easier. Don't waste your energy, boys, telling women how to live. FOCUS ON THE RAPIST AND ON EMPOWERING WOMEN. Involve women in your investigation. BIG TIME! Women have the experience, they know their neighbourhoods and they can often give you a lot of information about men who rape. Publish as much detail about this rapist as you can. It won't undermine your investigation. It will enhance it. There are men and women out there you will recognize something about this man and they will turn him in or report something helpful to police. Most serial rapists are caught due to some small thing that slips them up. Create more opportunities for him to slip up. Cops shouldn't view the information as their private property so that they can claim the credit if and when they make a credible arrest. This is a community problem and requires a community solution. Let all the women and men of the community participate. ENCOURAGE all the women and men of the community to participate. Women certainly aren't responsible for rapists, but they do want to stop them from hurting each other as much as anyone else; probably more, unfortunately.
And for cripes sake, DON'T accuse women such as those of the Garneau Sisterhood of being threatening vigilantes. These are women who give a great big shit and are exercising their powerful right to protect their community, they're not rapists and murderers! In the past, actions by community women have been instrumental in catching rapists and alerting the community to the things that MIGHT REALLY HELP. They're your friends, stupid. They know what they're doing because they take it seriously and know that locking doors and closing windows DOESN'T CATCH RAPISTS! What if it's too hot to close the windows? Heat stroke is the choice?
I can just hear the chatter after a woman is raped now: "Oh that's too bad but geez, what a stupid woman, she had an open window; oh, she forgot to lock her door, HOW COULD SHE? Gimme a break.
Madmonq, when we focus on the behaviour of women we are not focusing on the behaviour of those who perpetrate violence against women. We are suggesting that there is something that a woman can do to prevent sexual assault when in fact the only person who decides whether or not a sexual assault occurs is the offender.
There is no right or wrong way for a woman (or man) to respond to being sexually assaulted. Whatever the person does to survive is the "rigth thing".
I don't like the idea of suggesting that women should know how to defend themselves because 1) It suggests that there is a "correct" way to respond to being sexually assaulted. We don't know how we will respond when being sexually assaulted; many people "freeze" and this is a perfectly valid response, 2) It once again focuses on the behaviour of the woman versus the perpetrator.
I don't think any of us (feminists, anti-violence activists) are suggesting it is WRONG for a woman to do what she needs to feel safe and/or survive a sexual assault. Rather, we are challenging the typical focus on the woman's behaviour and saying rather it should be on the perpetrator and his actions, as well as a society which condones and perpetuates violence against women.
I say again, if there was a murderer prowling the streets, I would expect the police and others to provide guidelines for everyone- man or woman- to follow to protect themselves from becoming a victim. Does this mean we are "blaming the people" or "focusing on the victim's actions"? Of course not. We are trying to give people the means to protect themselves from an unreasonable person.
If there was a pedophile on the loose, we would ask parents to have their kids in by a certain time and encourage parents to keep close taps on their teens. Are we blaming the children, then?
The majority of sexual assaults are perpetrated by someone the victim knows - family, "friends", partners. Stranger rapists get high profiles in the media but they are by no means the most common.
I have worked in this field for the past decade, and I have seen firsthand how "tips" impact survivors. Individuals who have been victimized by sexual violence are impacted by "tips" in that they believe that they are somehow at fault, that they "contributed" to the sexual assault.
In regards to your parallel to murder victims, I believe that people who have been murdered are for the most part treated very different than those who have been sexual assaulted. (I say for the most part because people who work in the sex trade, for example, are often blamed for their victimization).
As for pedophiles on the loose, there ARE pedophiles on the loose. And these pedophiles are most often people the children know. Stranger Danger campaigns do little to help children who are being abused by people they love and trust.
On a side note, I am frustrated that with the media exposure of this offender, there is not accompanying information for all survivors on where to get support. This media exposure can be very triggering for individuals and families impacted by sexual violence, and it is important to let the community know that there are agencies out there which provide non-judgmental support to survivors of sexual violence.
The Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton provides a 24 hour crisis line (780 423 4121) and counselling and education services. The U of A Sexual Assault Centre also provides support and information (780-492-9771). SAFFRON: Strathcona Sexual Assault Centre (780 449 0900) also provides counselling and support.
If the Garneau neighborhood was not in a crisis right now, then I would agree that we ought not to post these guidelines, as they refer specifically to strangers. But there is a time when that must be put aside- certain "red alert" situations in which guidelines such as these are appropriate.
In reality, the rate of sexual assault in the city has not significantly increased because of this offender being on the loose. Sexual assault occurs every single day, and 85% of victims know their assailant. Telling women to avoid strangers and find someone to protect them doesn't help, since they are most likely to be assaulted by someone they know and trust. The sad reality is that there is far more danger from acquaintances, friends, partners and family members than there ever is from a stranger on the street.
And the notion that "Sometimes women are blame for the act because they are “wearing provocative dress,” ‘they were promiscous anyway” or something like that" is false. Dressing in a given manner or even seeking sex is not the same as looking to be sexually assaulted. Whether a woman has many consensual sexual experiences or none has nothing to do with her right to bodily autonomy and personal safety. Every person has the right to say no. And women are assaulted in sweatpants or pyjamas, not just miniskirts. When perpetrators are interviewed and are asked what the victim was wearing, they generally cannot recall a single detail of the survivor's clothing, not even the colour.
In reality, tips are a way of controlling women's lives, not preventing sexual assault. If we really were interested in stopping men from assaulting women, we'd tell men that they shouldn't go out alone at night, seeing as that's when the perpetrator is committing these crimes. Why are we controlling the actions of potential targets and not potential offenders? Seems a little backwards to me.
There are some very easy guidelines men could adhere to until the "high" danger has passed.
Such as but not limited to
Staying indoors after 6pm
Only leaving the house with a buddy
Since the rapist in question is a man, then men can be the ones restricted to safety guidelines.
Also, having a list of things women "should" do to be safe means you now have a list of things to use against a woman if the rapist succeeds in attacking her.
A woman doesn't fail to protect herself, the rapist succeeds in raping her.
It also, as others have noted, focused on women's behavior instead of men's, as though we are at fault when we have not followed the safety tips. Should we do so, we would essentially live at home under house arrest wearing a muumuu. This is not acceptable. I second Pheenobarbidoll's suggestion that men's movements should be limited until such time as it is safe for women to leave the house when men are out and about. It's really the only logical solution.
Still wouldn't be good enough. The asshole is, after all, gaining access to women inside their homes, and muumuus are easy access garments. If we really want to be safe we'll need to lock ourselves in bank vaults while wearing space suits. Anything else would be half-measures that a sufficiently determined individual could conceivably break through.
What we as women really need - short of the obvious catching the rapist and changing culture so rape is unthinkable - is information that would let us react to /the specific situation/ instead of an amorphous terror. Which, incidentally, would probably also help the public tip off the police to catch him. Stuff like what time of day he has been striking and how he gains entry to homes. Whether there have been suspicious person reports preceding the attacks, and what the suspicious person was doing. Whether he travels on foot or bike or car. A description of the perp beyond "5'9" and wearing dark clothing". A description of his vehicle if he has one.
A public armed with that kind of information might be a bit less "not my problem" when they see a stranger up to something not quite usual, if they knew what they were looking for, and call the cops more readily.
I disagree.
pheeno:
Your post does not make sense. For one, the guidelines that have been posted are NOT restrictions, they are simply advisements. There is no law that says women HAVE to lock their doors, be in by 6pm, etc. They are simply things that women can CHOOSE to abide by to possibly lower their chances of becoming a victim of the rapist.
Your suggestion about the "guidelines for men" is a bit ridiculous. Ignoring the fact that it would be unconstitutional, as I said before, they would not in fact be restrictions. By all means, post these guidelines for men as well; it would be useless, though, because men would not be required to abide by them and very few would CHOOSE to- since they are in no danger and they would KNOW they themselves are not the Garneau rapist. Certainly the rapist himself wouldn't abide by these guidelines.
When you say that "having a list of things, for women to do gives the rapist something to use against her", what do you mean? I'm not really sure how a woman locking her door would give the assaulter a "weapon" against her. How exactly would he "use this against her?"
Furthermore, I completely disagree that this serial rapist has NOT raised the danger of assault in this relatively small neighborhood. Furthermore, disregarding this, the danger of assault BY A STRANGER has certainly spiked. With this understood, there are very, very clear guidelines that women can CHOOSE to apply to help lower the chances of assault BY A STRANGER.
For the third time, this is being treated no differently than a murder case. Women are the only ones in danger here, so guidelines are being targeted as- GASP- women!
I disagree."
How nice for you.
If you are a man, you really have no idea what we face, what kind of calculus of security we engage every single day of our lives, whether there's a serial rapist in town or not. You may "disagree", but you're still lacking a clue. Which is evidenced by your absolute inability to see how the media focus on women's behaviour is victim-blaming hogwash. It's time for the media to focus on men's behaviour - and how the serial rapist's is on the same continuum as grab-assing, verbal harassment, violent pornography, and acquaintance rape. It is merely an escalation of the more usual fare, which doesn't get nearly the media attention it should. Why? Because women are blamed and blamed again for the crimes perpetrated against them, from the "minor" to the fatal. Men, on the other hand, are rarely, if ever, encouraged to question their complicity in a culture in which sexual violence is so prevalent.
I disagree based on lifetime observation. Women face an elevated risk of sexual assault, but to say that you engage in "security" that is "beyond my imagination" daily, is quite simply ludicrous.
Get over yourself.
... I'm not trolling. I spent a solid amount of time typing up a well-thought-out response to reasoning that I find flawed. As a response all I get is snide comments directed at minor points (jezebella) and statements such as "ur ignorant lol" and "u dunt no wut ur talking about haha!" Who's trolling again?
I'm sorry if I came off as rude, but it's frustrating.
What "prevention" tips do you believe are helpful to women?
Since the last post I made as "GRad" (the 26th), I have recieved:
a. a snide comment from Jezebella directed at exactly two words in my original post, completely skipping the main body;
b. a comment from hysperia telling me to "read a book";
c. a comment from Bridget telling me to "stop trolling";
d. and yours.
Why don't you start telling me exactly why I am so wrong and ignorant?
I personally would advise women to be on the lookout for suspicious people, especially at night (I would also extend this to men, simply because they should be reporting anything suspicious; however, since women would be the ones in danger it's especially important for them). Perhaps suggesting a curfew is a little unrealistic, but I would certainly suggest that women lock their doors, if they aren't doing so already. People likely lock their doors anyway- just because it's a good idea in general- but under the current circumstances it's more important for women- especially women living alone. Locking one's door is kind of a "duh" move, but to be especially safe I would suggest (just suggest), that women lock their windows, unless it makes the house too warm or something like that.
I really am baffled as to how anyone could find offense in what I have just said.
Women should lock their doors? Wow. That's the most original solution to the problem of rape I've ever heard. lol your nuts
You miss the point entirely with your second paragraph, as per usual. I have never claimed to have some kind of "formula" for avoiding rape. However, locking one's doors- among other precautions- is a simple and easy method to reduce risk IN THIS PARTICULAR CASE. And for some reason, you and others here find it offensive that the police or other media should make this- among other precautions- known to the general public. That is what this whole debate is about, nothing else. To say that "that's the most original solution to rape I have ever heard" is completely off the mark and utterly irrelevent. Just because it isn't "original" dooesn't mean it can't help. And you and the others seem to have a problem with the public knowing this. THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH MEN OR WOMEN. THIS IS ABOUT GIVING A GROUP OF PEOPLE THE KNOWLEDGE TO REDUCE THE RISK OF BECOMING THE VICTIM OF A PERSON THAT HAS TARGETED THEM.
Get off your high horse. This isn't feminist politics, this is about keeping human beings safe.
This has EVERYTHING to do with men and women. If rape isn't about feminist politics, what in the name of all that's good and lovely do you think feminist politics is about?