By now, you’ve probably seen the controversial Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board ads. You know, the ones that feature photos of what appear to be a young girl’s legs splayed on a tiled bathroom floor with underwear around her ankles. The ads send the message that women are not only at fault for getting themselves raped—a societal bias reflected in and re-enforced by too many court decisions—it’s your fault if your friend gets raped, too.
Dan Rottenberg, editor of online arts mag Broad Street Review (and way back, editor of this publication when it was Welcomat) wrote an editor’s letter last week that’s drawing criticism from national media watchdog outlets like Women’s Media Center—and deservedly so.
Two and a half years after Derrick Cook almost killed Katrina Mansfield, she sits quietly in a courtroom, alone, awaiting what the justice system considers fair trade for what she calls her life sentence. By any reasonable definition, Cook is a violent sexual predator—except, after a drawn-out and botched hearing to determine the status, in the eyes of the law.
In Africa, your vagina can get spikes for $2. Complete with sharkskin-like barbs that catch onto an invading penis, causing pain and preventing urination, and requiring specialized medical professionals to remove, the Rape-aXe is a real-world application of feminist theory.
Designer found guilty of 14 felonies and two misdemeanors against seven of the nine women, including one forcible-rape charge and multiple counts of lewd acts upon a child, and faces life in prison.