Rape of Prosepina September 2015-3a.
(Image by (Not Known) Wikipedia (commons.wikimedia.org), Author: Author Not Given) Details Source DMCA
There are a number of solid reasons to believe Tara Reade, and her sisters.
For one, within the context of toxic patriarchy, it is so emotionally traumatic for a woman to come forward to even make an accusation. It brings up everything a woman desperately wants to forget, it causes physical and emotional trauma, it is yet another chilling descent into a familiar hell. It can take years to even be willing to whisper the truth.
Also, changes in the story are to be expected and this actually supports the fact that Tara is telling the truth. (Tara's changes have been additions, not reversals of information.) Sexual assault causes Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. With PTSD, not all trauma is remembered at once, and even if it is, it is not always possible to speak about it. A scenario of a "trumped up" accusation can be memorized dispassionately, and a person making false claims would certainly take pains to keep track of details. A person who has actually been sexually assaulted may remember things differently at different times, due to the emotional trauma, and it is not unusual for someone to suddenly remember details a decade or more later that their unconscious has been protecting them from. Talk to any soldier with wartime PSTD, they don't remember everything at once, either!
And please keep in mind that "penetrating someone digitally" without their consent is one of the legal definitions of rape, it's just a nicer way of saying it.
I believe Anita, Christine, and Tara. Any woman who has been through something like that herself can hear it in their voices. It is unmistakable and whatever "it" is, exactly, that we can hear, well, it cannot be faked.
It is beyond horrifying for women who have survived sexual assault to be asked to vote for the lesser rapist. In addition to the huge numbers of American women who have been sexually assaulted, we have also been gang raped by the patriarchy, by the DNC, by the Supreme Court, and by the GOP -- the list goes on.
Being told to even consider casting my one sacred vote for the lesser rapist is another rape. If rape survivors can't bring themselves to vote for the lesser rapist, don't lay the blame at their feet!
Fear that Trump will be reelected is a valid fear, in probably the most significant election in U.S. history. Of course, it is/was the responsibility of the DNC to provide a candidate that we could vote for without initiating a whole new series of therapist visits. That was their responsibility last time, too. But they are too corrupt to do their job, and apparently too stupid to learn that it is dangerous to provide voters with these kinds of "lesser evil" choices. Or, perhaps they are doing an outstanding job for a different goal -- keeping Trump in the White House -- which is also a possibility.
Either way, it is not too late for us to demand that the DNC provide a proper candidate, and that is why it is so critical to deal with this issue right now.
However, the most important issue is what you allow Trump to do to you, in this moment.
If you let your fear of Trump overcome your ethics, then he has won a much bigger victory than just the election.
4
3
2
