This week I learned about Katie Koestner and her tragic story. Koestner was raped when she was a freshman in college by a boy whom she had been dating. Koestner repeatedly told the boy that she was waiting for marriage because that was in her religion and she planned to follow through with her beliefs. At first the boy said it was fine, but on this particular night he pressed the topic of sex on Koestner even more so until finally he was pinning her down in her own college dorm room.
This is something that occurs more often than reported within many cultures. In American culture, women have the privilege to speak out and many listen to their stories. I can’t say this is true within minority cultures however, which is another issue within itself.
Within Native American culture, rape is more common than we probably realize because these women do not have the opportunity to speak out and tell their story to another person. It takes courage and bravery to come forward about assault.
In 2013 Sarah Deer, a Native American lawyer, helped to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act. Within her role, she advocates for Native women who experience sexual violence and abuse. Deer wrote a book in 2015 called The Beginning and End of Rape: Confronting Sexual Violence in Native America. This book addresses these issues that Native Americans have faced now and throughout history. It’s important that Deer speaks out about sexual violence within Native culture because she gives a voice to those who may be too scared to tell their story. With Deer’s voice, more women come forward about their assaults and she is able to represent them if legal action is taken.
Like Deer, Koestner speaks out about rape and sexual violence. She spreads her story to schools and to many other people. Although some don’t want to listen to the issue of rape, Koestner reaches them by her personal story. It’s important to be an ally to those who may live in fear of their horrific experiences. As a society, we need to listen when people reach out to tell their story because denying people their voice is confining them to a life of silence.