I once sat with a girl who told me she had been raped.
She had gone to spend the night at her boyfriendâs house, & he spiked her drink.
She woke up to signs of sexual assault â confused, scared, & hurt.
I told her we could go together to make a police report.
I sat beside her as the officer said things like:
âYou shouldnât have gone over there.â
âYou shouldnât have stayed the night.â
âYou shouldnât have accepted a drink.â
âYou shouldnât have been drinking alcohol at all.âïżŒ
Every word he said was about what she did wrong â not about what was done to her.
I corrected him. I told him that none of the choices she made were her fault.
None of this was her fault.
He was the one who drugged and assaulted her. Itâs not ok to say itâs her fault. He was shocked and mumbled well ânoâ
Instead of taking her report with professionalism, without judgment, without bias â he made her feel blamed.
She left without filing charges.
This is how rape culture persistsïżŒ