I am mad. I am more than mad. I am enraged. I am sick and tired. I am so incredibly mad that it often paralyzes me.
Some of you should know what I’m talking about.
After a couple of weeks of horrific news circulating in the media, I have seen that my anger is a shared feeling.
The heinous crime we see coming out of Cornell is yet another example of violence against women that will ultimately go unpunished, as it has for the past centuries of injustices.
For those who have somehow missed it,
Cornell University has an open civil lawsuit against seven men who have been accused of gang-raping and drugging a peer at the Chi Phi fraternity house. The seven perpetrators are now colloquially titled the “Cornell 7.”
While this type of violent crime against women is unfortunately not uncommon, this case is gaining traction in the media because the seven men who have committed this crime were reprimanded to a scary small degree. According to a New York Times report, only two of the seven were expelled, and the rest were “punished” by having to write an essay about their misdeeds. There has been no punishment at all for the 57 other men in the Snapchat group chat where one of the perpetrators spoke of the victim as “Free P*ssy.” Not one of them spoke up. Not one of them protested. None of them reported the crime.
The disgusting lack of accountability for these crimes is a reminder of the type of behavior that continues to plague women and society at large. Institutions, like Cornell University, are maddeningly forgiving of perpetrators, perpetuating the idea that men can commit these crimes…and get away with it.
Not only is the injustice influencing the outpouring of anger, but we see how this is an easy, catchy case for people to latch onto. Even the short, snappy name of the “Cornell 7” shows how the repercussions of the violent gang rape are falling to the wayside in favor of attention to the men. While we need to be focusing on men’s accountability, we have inadvertently made this case about the perpetrators, not about the crime.
We cannot let this happen. We need to keep the pressure on the violence they are inflicting on women and why they felt justified in doing this.
But what’s worse
is this isn’t even the only drugging and rape that has been exposed on a large scale this month. Braden Peters, an influencer known for a movement called “looksmaxxing” also knows Clavicular, assaulted Aleksandra Vasilevna Mendoza. As NPR reports, he was charged with rape of a teenage girl.
Crimes like these are not rare and are not stopping. In my last Her Campus article, “Manosphere” is Corrupting Youth and Government, I highlighted the online groups and forums that encourage hateful rhetoric against women and have influenced real-world consequences. This is just another example of an influencer who claims that they are teaching men how to become more attractive, but the misogyny is seeping through. It’s showing through the cracks in the media that is attempting to hide it.
Keep an eye on this. Don’t let this case be just another momentarily inconvenient feeling in your wider belief in women’s equality. Let it influence your beliefs in a way that moves you to speak out and make change.
My anger is shared.
I am obviously not the only one angry about the injustice that women regularly face. There has been an outpouring of anger to hold men accountable, but specifically the “Cornell 7.” As I said, we should not let this anger fade out into a dull throb in the back of our minds, to burst out when the next horrific crime hits the news.
There is hope that blossoms in me as I watch protests at Cornell and other universities. Even locally, St. Bonaventure’s club Empower hosted their event “Take Back the Night,” where students gathered to show their support for women’s equality. They even had stickers and signs that stated “I am Jane Doe” in reference to the victim in the Cornell gang rape. This is a conversation that needs to happen. Those in power, at the national level but also at the local/institutional level, need to hear our frustration. They need to hear the yelling that is coming from women.
Sharing Instagram stories is a great way to get the word out, but you should also let this anger turn into motivation.
A quick personal note: I am known, by my friends and peers, as an outspoken, loud, “annoying” feminist. I speak up whenever I hear of a misogynistic term being uttered. I am the first person to scold someone for treating a woman with anything but the respect and decency that any human is owed. I make sure that people know where I stand on this issue because I am so angry about the way nothing is changing.
I am angry that men cannot fully understand my anger. There are men who are genuine allies of feminism and equality and work to make sure that others are held accountable. However, there will always be a disconnect in their understanding. They will never understand how it truly feels to be subjected to the violence that women are subjected to. Violence that happens around us all the time. The fear that is instilled in us at a young age as we are taught to be careful, while they are told to be tough. They will never understand the scope and deep-rootedness of my anger, and that frustrates me.
But I know I am not alone in my anger. I am surrounded by strong women who are just as angry as I am. I am heard and understood when I speak up in a room full of women. That community is what will make our voices the loudest they can be.
My anger is not something new, and it is not something that is dependent on a trending movement. While focusing on each individual case is something that will bring attention to the mistreatment and injustice women face every day, don’t let the anger subside!
Harness this anger into motivation. Let it fuel your voice, actions, and activism.