Outside the Box

This time of the year is homecoming for most high schools and colleges across the country. Many take place during and after a football game on school grounds. In Richmond, California October 24th, 2009 was the date of their homecoming celebration. Many of the high schoolers were excited for their annual dance and dressed accordingly. For most teenagers it’s just a dance and chance to spend some time with their friends and to let loose and have some fun. For one 15-year old this will be a day she will never forget. For her this night is her worst nightmare.

A male ‘friend’ of hers invited her to step outside and join a group of people behind the school drinking and having a good time. She fit right in with her peers, drinking and laughing into the night. What happened next changed everything. For two hours she was brutally beaten and raped by at least 4 men. Ages ranging from fifteen to twenty-one. During this violent attack a crowd formed as more people heard the news, this group is heard to have grown to about twenty guys. Of these twenty –four people involved: zero of them stepped in to help this little girl, zero thought to call 911, zero thought to get an adult, twenty watched and cheered as four or more continued to hit and force themselves into her. Some even snapped pictures and video of her vicious attack. This once lively young woman is now in critical condition after someone finally called for help. She is fighting for her life because a group of guys, someone’s son and brother, decided she was going to be the night’s entertainment. Hopefully she will survive this attack, but she will never be the same.

After an attack like this it’s hard not to take a step back and start to finger-point at every logical cause of this horrible crime. Parents, school administrators, alcohol, video games, porn, lack of security, the local gangs, society as a whole, the victim and the boys will all be blamed; I’m sure people have others to blame as well this is just a rough sketch. The most common questions asked:

Where were the school officials in charge of this dance?

Why didn’t any of the bystanders call for help or step in?

Why were there 21 year old men at this high school homecoming?

Where was this girl’s protection?

Why do these attackers feel this was okay?

How could anyone victimize a “friend” like this?

But most of all how can this happen?

Now I don’t know much about the town of Richmond nor of its school or students, but what I do know is that these students are someone’s children. The boys involved all have mothers, some probably even have sisters. I want to know how they could do that to someone else’s sister or daughter. What made them feel that it was okay to get this girl drunk, and assault her like this? Was this just for fun, solely for entertainment purposes or were there other motives behind it? I cannot even describe some of the feelings I had after reading the initial article. I was angered, disappointed, and enraged, but also sad, helpless, and devastated. After being in the hands of a sexual abuser for ten years and having no one save me, I can image this little girl lying there helplessly, while other people, people she knew stood by and watched. It breaks my heart that the younger generations of today are so wrapped up in their own reputations that they would not step in and stop this violent attack, even if it wasn’t someone they knew. It could have been their sister, one of their friends, or in later years their daughter. So far seven men have been arrested, and if they are found guilty they will be out in less than fifteen years if they are even sentenced to prison, some may even be out after two. Justice isn’t being served, deterrence isn’t being made. These men changed this little girl’s life forever, and all they get for it is a jail cell and free care for the next few years.

I read multiple articles surrounding this assault and most had comments after them. Some wished horrible punishments on the attackers, some blamed the girl for drinking, others stated it would never happen where they live or to them. For those who feel it will never happen in their town or to them or their daughters or sisters, rape happens EVERYWHERE, and to ANYONE. More times than not the victims know their attacker. The creepy stranger guy in the dark alley preying on young girls doesn’t exist. It’s their lab partner, neighbor, cousin, babysitter, or friend, but most parents only warn their daughters of the strangers lurking somewhere in the darkness, I know mine did. The one person I would like to receive a medal is the anonymous caller who reported this attack. The reached out to a helpless individual and saved her life, but you didn’t hear about this person in most of the articles, they didn’t receive national attention nor a pat on the back from the local towns. They are invisible.

“Students who know what to do when they witness school violence, or when they have a strong sense of impending violence, will become anonymous heroes.” — Ron Astor

These anonymous heroes are going to be what changes the opinions of our upcoming generations. They will be the ones who save our little girls from violence, and our sons from devastation. But they will never be thanked in equivalence to their actions. Most of them will be bullied and ridiculed for ‘snitching’ on their classmates or friends. Most will even become victims, but that is a risk that they are willing to take, a risk that I am willing to take, a risk I hope you are willing to take so save the life of a stranger.

Written by KindlyxUnspoken
http://kindlyxunspoken.wordpress.com/2009/11/04/to-an-anonymous-hero/

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