As many of you have heard, a young woman was raped and sexually battered in her dorm room last Wednesday night. The freshman girl did not recognize her attacker, and is unsure of how he managed to get inside her dorm room at Kappa Hall. According to My Fox Tampa Bay, the police are unsure if the man was a student or not. The suspect has been identified as a Caucasian male between the ages of 18-22 and close to six feet tall. He has a muscular build and is estimated to weigh around 180 pounds and has shaggy brown hair. For most of us, this is somewhat of a wakeup call. We have heard stories about rape, and seen sexual battery on Law and Order SVU, but this hits closer to home. Knowing that a stranger made his way into a girl’s dorm that has security, on a Wednesday evening and raped her is a scary thing.
Rape cannot always be prevented, but there are a few tips to help stop this from happening to you. First of all, avoid walking alone at night, especially in a parking lot. For times when you are by yourself, make sure to pay attention to your surroundings. Most people, including myself, call someone on the phone when they’re walking alone at night. However, according to Ripleycountry.com, this can cause you to be distracted; something a rapist looks for when approaching a victim. My dad is a Tae Kwon Do instructor, and on a daily basis he gives me advice on how to take control of a scary situation. Scream for help. Keep screaming and screaming, because a rapist is less likely to keep the attack going if attention is called, and the victim appears to be fighting back. Don’t be afraid to go after you’re attacker. The article from Ripleycounty.com, “Through a Rapist’s Eyes,” encourages you to go for the groin, and if you are not in a position to hit, pinch. Pinch their upper arms, close to the armpits or the upper thigh.
Carrying pepper spray is a useful thing. You may never need to use it, but just having it on your key chain, ready to whip it out at a moment’s notice, can just make you feel better walking alone. USF also offers women’s self-defense classes. R.A.D, which stands for The Rape Aggression Defense System offers a program for woman teaching the basic self-defense tactics and techniques. It is a 12 hour basic self-defense course, or a 2 hour credited semester course. To learn more about the classes that are offered, email Sgt. Charlotte Domingo at cdomingo@admin.usf.edu.
For more information on what a rapist looks for and ways to prevent an attack, visit Ripley County’s website.
Photo source:Â http://www.care2.com/news/member/606998198/2304258
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