how to be safe in these violent streets

I saw this video the other day.

All women should definitely get this product! It’s revolutionary! You never again have to be afraid of another person’s intent to hurt you, and can go to bars, exercise, and travel with confidence!

Also, make sure you take an older woman with you everywhere as a chaperone. And never spend time alone with a man. Oh, and your father owns your body until you’re married, when the ownership transfers to your husband. If people are going to start selling chastity belts again, let’s just go all the way back to the 15th century.

Assault is a tricky subject. It’s sensitive and invokes a lot of emotion. I’m all for a woman taking extra precautions to ensure her safety if that’s what she feels best doing, but she shouldn’t have to. A woman shouldn’t have to wear only ankle-length turtleneck dresses to avoid cat-calling. A woman shouldn’t have to limit herself to one or two drinks on a night out to prevent someone from taking advantage of her. A woman shouldn’t have to scope out the men in every room to determine which ones seem creepy and which ones would be a good fake boyfriend/bodyguard if the creepy ones don’t leave her alone.  A woman should not have to lock herself into her underwear to avoid being raped. 

Ending sexual assault starts with addressing why the people who do the assaulting do it. About teaching them how not to do it. Combatting assault should not be selling reinforced undies to young women. That’s a bandaid solution.

I’ve been following Kesha’s case against Dr. Luke, and almost burst into tears in the airport when I learned of the judge’s ruling last Friday (x). I don’t think this product is going to protect Kesha from the fear she faces every day, or the fact that her career is stalled because she is afraid to work with the man who allegedly “drugged, sexually abused, and psychologically tortured” her.

I don’t think AR Wear is going to solve any problems. It moves the responsibility for ending rape to the victims. I can see the headline now: “Woman accuses man of assault, but she was wearing regular underpants so, I mean, she was asking for it”.

I don’t have some magical answer to end rape. But I think we can do more to protect victims of assault than selling them stronger panties.

Good luck out there,

Linneah