Stopping the Door

Another 'dirty' blip. Can't help it. Just think these kinds of 'overlooked objects' are fascinating. Four hours at the tattoo parlor today. Time definitely flew. Unfortunately, that means I didn't get a lot of notes to use for class. Oh well. Ended up getting home late and too tired to put up my blip. So here it is.


A few people (cagedbird) wanted to know what my rant from yesterday would be, so here goes:

The purpose of the 'panic button' seems to be for two purposes: the possibility of rape and the possibility of a physical assault. The button itself is located on a wall opposite the actual door to the room and every bedroom is equipped with a button. Thus, they assume that the person in need of the button can't get to the door. In the case of a physical assault, hopefully the individual is not in their apartment by themselves. If they are, or if their roommates are otherwise incapacitated, the button is a fantastic idea and might be a life-saver. Or not.

If they're assuming the button will be used in the case of rape, a whole new set of problems arise. The occurrence rate of rape on college campuses (which is where i am and where the button is) is relatively high, but very few cases are reported for a number of reasons. The main reason that rapes are not reported is that a vast majority of rapes on college campuses as well as in general society are perpetrated by acquaintances of the 'victim' or 'survivor'. The 'survivor' does not want to report the rape because she or he will still most likely have to see the person afterwards (in classes, in friend get-togethers, etc.). Of the females (gender most often statistically raped) who do report their rapes, they are stigmatized by the press and society. Case in point: the Kobe Bryant case. In this case, the male defendant was portrayed as an 'innocent victim' who, in his professional standing, couldn't have possibly done anything wrong, let alone rape a woman. His continual claims of consensual sex seem to take precedence and gain more respect than the female 'survivor''s claims that she was raped. She is seen and portrayed as a 'liar' as a woman "unwilling to prosecute" (a common symptom of rape victims; the denial of the event itself along with symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Another common stigma includes the fact that the female 'survivor' was "asking for it" by wearing revealing clothing or drinking too much, or being in a bad area really late at night.

In cases of acquaintance rape (about 85-90% of reported (both by the victims and in police reports) rapes), the female will be too afraid/in too much denial to push the 'panic button'. Then there's the fact that if the rape involves actual violence or force, the 'survivor' will be very unlikely to "test" the rapist by fighting back as the rapist may threaten serious physical harm. Another thing to consider is that in situations of extreme fear (induced by rape events), that one of the common natural body responses is a shut-down including mental, physical, and emotional.

To me, the button is useful in some situations of physical assault, but in situations involving sexual assault, the likelihood that the button will be used when it's needed is so low as to render the button almost useless.

*hope i didn't disappoint, caged*








^^Shit. I did it again, didn't I? I...I come out of it and don't remember what happened. It's dark now. It's cold. I hate the cold. I wish i could go back to the home. But they kicked me out. They just...they didn't want me anymore. Nobody came to visit me. I...I used to have a family. I miss them. I miss them a lot.^^


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