Hello again! So, this is going to be separate from my usual blog posts because I don’t exactly know what to categorize this as. It’s not an essay, fiction, or nonfiction – it’s opinionated… and I guess you could say it’s more like a rant. >.>
I have a few samples of this type of writing saved in separate files on my computer, but I’ve never actually had the courage to post any of them publicly. Everyone has pretty much already voiced their opinions on the topics that I’m going to talk about, and I know I’m a bit late to the party, but I still think it’s necessary. So… here’s my first one.
I am posting this the same day as another piece of writing: a “letter to my younger self,” because I think it’s important to talk about something besides my life with everything happening in America as of late. So, if you’re not into this sort of thing, go ahead and go straight for the letter (in a separate entry under nonfiction) if you please.
But ready or not, here we go:
I want to briefly touch upon a few hot topics that America has been consumed with as of late.
I normally don’t address issues like this on the internet because I’m not political in the slightest and I have a nasty habit of trying to avoid conflict at all costs, but I think that it’s important as an aspiring writer to give my two cents on what’s happening in the world today (and some advice) before talking about (and to) myself the entire blog.
MY TOPICS: the Standford rapist, Christina Grimmie’s murder, and the shootings in Orlando.
First Topic: I actually talked about the Standford rapist (take note that I will not be saying his name because I think it’s important that everyone sees him as a rapist – not a decent person) a bit on Facebook: “I normally try not to re-post links, and post my opinion, on hot debate issues like this, but I can’t even remotely believe this one. This shouldn’t even be a debate. Rape is rape – alcohol induced or not, it doesn’t matter. If someone doesn’t or is unable to consent, then it’s rape. She was drunk and unconscious, so she was unable to consent – that should be the end of the story. Rapists don’t fit a stereotypical mold and the punishment should be based on the facts of the incident itself anyways, so who cares who this kid was before this happened? It doesn’t matter who he was, or who everyone thought he was. The fact is that it happened and he should get the proper punishment for it. You shouldn’t be able to get away with assaulting anyone – sober/drunk, conscious/unconscious. Rape is rape and this is completely ridiculous.”
So, that’s my opinion on the topic – obviously I feel like justice hasn’t been served.
And for those who don’t know what I’m referring to– I’m talking about the boy who got drunk at a college party and sexually assaulted an unconscious woman behind a dumpster last year. The judge only sentenced him to 6 months in prison (even though he should have gotten at least 14 years.) because he thought that a longer sentence “would have a very negative impact” on the rapist.
Thankfully, the rapist was AT LEAST put on the list of sex offenders, but in my opinion, no punishment is severe enough for someone who commits the worst crime any human being can inflict upon another (besides murder, obviously).
On that note, I personally believe that “victim blaming” is bull – how is rape ever the victim’s fault? Sure, the situation could have been avoided, but that doesn’t mean she was expecting or asking for it. That’s why she’s a victim. I just don’t understand the logic.
In any case, let’s review what the main issue with this is – what are people most offended by?
Some people are viewing this as a race issue: they claim that if the rapist happened to be black, then he would’ve gotten more time. People on Facebook have been using Cory Batey – a former football player – as an example. (Batey was sentenced 15-25 years in prison for committing sexual assault.) This argument is more than likely valid, but I can’t say too much about it because I’m not a member of the black community.
However, people are also viewing this as a sexism issue: the system has failed the victim – the woman. Obviously I know what it’s like to be a woman: so, therefore – this is part of the reason why women are so reluctant to go to the police after being assaulted. The system fails the victim all the time, and sometimes it makes the aftermath for the woman worse. So, most victims (honestly, male or female) are hesitant to actually fill out a police report (which you should always do no matter what because you don’t want to take the risk of your attacker hurting anyone else.).
People have also been saying that this is a slap in the face for women everywhere and that this is why we need feminism in today’s world because this proves that the system does not protect women. While I wholeheartedly agree with the previous sentence, I also believe that it’s mostly about the system failing to protect the victim (no matter the gender) than the assaulter.
In any case, despite the fact that I agree with these two views, I actually believe that the main issue is classism – status. The rapist went to Standford University and he was a talented swimmer. He had a good reputation – friends and family provided statements that supported him. He could afford fancy lawyers who targeted the victim and made the aftermath even more horrible for her. The judge felt bad for the kid because he had “a lot of stress” put upon him and a longer sentence would “have a largely negative impact on his life.”
Now, to be clear, this kid’s family has money. You ever notice how celebrities sometimes get off scot-free? He doesn’t even believe that what he did to that poor woman was wrong: he just goes ON and ON about how his life is ruined because he drank too much at a college party. Fact is, he’s entitled, he’s oblivious, and he’s just wrong – SO wrong.
In regards to a solution, I think that a big part of the problem resides in how parents raise their children. Some people aren’t fit AND/OR don’t deserve to be parents, and they will still pop out children left and right. Now, if those people would stop having children OR decide to actually instill humility, good-natured logic, and common sense into their children, then they wouldn’t grow up to believe that drinking too much is WORSE than sexually assaulting someone. So please…wake up.
Next topic: I’d honestly never heard of Christina Grimmie until her passing, but a lot of my friends had watched her on Youtube growing up, and some of the Youtubers I watch during my me-time knew her personally. It’s weird because I didn’t know this person at all, but I actually cried like I did know her because too many innocent, talented, good people have their lives cut short for no reason other than pure evilness, hatred, bigotry, racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, and trans-phobia.
This unfortunately has become so common in today’s world that whenever we hear about another shooting or person who got gunned down, it rarely hits home for a lot of us anymore – but this one did, even though I didn’t even know this person. And it’s not because she was a rising star (for me at least) – it’s because she was 22 years old (just one year older than me) and did not deserve to have her life cut short. Also, this is just one example of hundreds of people who have met the same fate, and it’s a harsh reminder that it’s still happening and it’s actually getting worse.
However, because Christina Grimmie’s death is gaining so much coverage in the media, we really need to learn from this case specifically because it serves as one example of what’s happening everywhere, and it’s devastating to everyone.
We shouldn’t allow everyone to have such easy access to guns.
Last topic: I was actually at work when I first heard about the Orlando shootings on Sunday. I was in the hotel elevator, going down for my lunch break, when I opened up Facebook on my phone. The very first thing I saw was a notification from the NY Times with a link to an article about a mass shooting that had killed 49 people in Orlando Florida.
My heart dropped and I literally fell back against elevator wall as I started reading through everything. After being hit with the news of Muhammad Ali’s death, the Standford rapist, and Christina Grimmie’s death, this felt like the biggest blow (and honestly, it would’ve felt that way without those three things happening right before it). And when I got off break, I went back to work and kept turning on the TVs in the hotel rooms that I was cleaning so that I could listen to the news while I cleaned. When I came home, my grandparents were watching the news and the first thing they asked is if I had heard about what happened.
The reason this backstory is important is because there have been so many mass shootings over the past several years that we have all become desensitized to the news – we hear about it, we say that we’re going to pray for everyone involved, and then we move on with our lives.
But, again, this one is different. The news about it was (and still is) everywhere, and it’s because it was a terrorist attack as well as a direct attack on the LGBT community, and it had more casualties than any other American mass shooting (the worst terrorist attack on American soil since 9/11).
In regards to a solution… this tragedy actually made me switch positions in regards to the gun laws. For years I’ve been on the fence about the issue because people do have the right to own guns – it’s the second amendment. Plus, I always believed the phrase: “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people,” in which case, I guess my point used to be that we should focus more on ending terrorism than trying to restrict guns.
And I still somewhat feel that way, but I now officially think that it’s necessary to make the gun laws a little stricter. I’m not saying to ban them completely – I don’t think that would bode well at all. But I do think that we need to make it harder for people to buy guns. Yes, people kill people – but guns are literally made to kill. If we made it harder for mentally unstable and dangerous people to get their hands on them, then the public will be better off, for sure. End rant. *drops mic.*
Anyways, I’m sorry if that wasn’t your style – I’ve never actually posted something like this on the internet before because I feel like whatever I say has been overstated by others, but I felt the need to talk about what’s happening in the world rather than just myself in this nonfiction entry today.
I’m also sorry if you were expecting some positive vibes and less opinionated stuff in that rant because that’s what mostly every writer is doing right now – writing articles about spreading love instead of hatred, and challenging people to help out instead of simply saying “My thoughts and prayers are with them.”
But I’ve been left pretty salty and pessimistic after everything that’s happened – I couldn’t muster up the love and support that everyone is craving right now, because it’s just not real enough for me.
And in regards to challenging other people to help out – I would say do everything you can to help make the gun laws stricter. I would also encourage everyone to give blood and donate money to the families who lost a loved one.
The point is to try and make a difference instead of simply spreading love in the midst of hate as well as sending thoughts and prayers for the people who are suffering. While those things are important and helpful, they aren’t as helpful as trying to do something about preventing these tragedies in the future.
Despite what I just said, I will say that my heart goes out to all of the victims involved in the three tragedies I talked about– the Standford rape victim and her family, Christina Grimmie’s loved ones, and all of the families and friends of the people who passed away in the Orlando shooting.
I’m a pretty empathetic person, and it makes me cry trying to even remotely imagine how all of them must be feeling right now. They’re strong people, and everyone should be sending them love, despite the hatred and negativity involved in each situation.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed hearing my opinion on things for once (I don’t do it very often), and I’ll catch you later! ❤
-Rissy
rissy stories 
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