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6 Tubsday, December 7, aoio | The Red a Black Carey O’Neil | Managing Editor me@randb.com Courtney Holbrook | Opinions Editor opinions@randb.com Sexual assault a universal horror When I’m nervous or uncomfortable, a strange smile turns into gulping, inap propriate laughs. Oh, what’s that? You’re con fronting me about lying to you? Hold on, I have to go scream-laugh into this pil low over here. We all have our defense mechanisms, our little quirks that help us survive difficult situations. Eventually though, we must accept and address our problems directly, if not for our own health, then for the health of the person who is watching us laugh hysterically into a pillow. Now is the time for our community to collectively shed its defense mecha nisms, the harmful ways of coping with subjects that make us nervous or scared. The conversation sur rounding sexual assault and rape in our communi ty is diseased with unhealthy reactions. Discussion is shied away • from, if not completely avoided. When a dialogue does open, questions such as what a woman wore, what she drank or what her personal sexual histo ry was, always seem to come up. However, over half of all rape victims in the U.S. knew their attacker, according to U.S. women’s studies’ historian Estelle B. Freedman in “No Turning Back: the History of Feminism and the PUture of Women.” This helps shed some light on the invalid assessment these questions strive to make. Still, those topics of clothing and alcohol usu ally distract us from the real problem: every year, every semester, women are sexually assaulted and raped in Athens. The police filed 44 reports of rape in Clarke County last year, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s crime sta tistics. So, let’s be clear. When someone says, “Well, she was wearing that revealing outfit,” or “She was being unsafe, drinking too much,” or “She’s so pro miscuous and forward anyway, so who knows,” they are implying the sur vivor of sexual assault somehow provoked the attack. They imply a woman had control in the situa tion —a misguided con clusion, since rape is about taking control, not sex, and leaves victims feeling powerless. They may never say a woman deserved it or was asking soundbite ?I would publicly like to say thanks to whomever stole my Christmas decorations off my door. Merry Christmas, you pathetic loser. „ Note to self: walking towards or attempting to Y “ice-skate” the area around the fountain on North Campus while it’s frozen solid is not a good idea. fTo every hot girl on campus: Will you please stop staring at your cell phone for a few seconds so I can talk to you? Attention to all white victims of reverse racism: % America will only truly be a post-racial society when * the question of whether our society is post-racial is unnecessary. Who decided it’s a good idea to do construction * in the Science Library during the week of finals? @ Stop complaining about being fat when you’re * eating cereal. It’s cereal. Go eat salad if you’re upset. fTo men in short-shorts I don’t want to see that. Believe it or not, the Bible says “help thy neigh bor,” not “people who need welfare are lazy.” Ognlorai.mraedhßßedAßM*weewopMoiie<ilieiitore ml notneoeeeaWy tioea <* The Bto and Back PutMtag Company Inc Al right mml Rapt* by pamMon ot lit Mon. NEWS: 706-433*3002 Newe Editor Man Entity lunnlMt UayflA Crahw ft m lit~inl Q. Associate iwwt Honor riacnot Bunn Sports Editor ZachDiard Vartsty Editor Joe Mtams rHuit II r *** - - | Infill nn DiHmun rnoio Honor Megnan rinmin Deelgn EdNort Lauren Btitmy, nowy rwivw Copy EdNort Elaine Ketch. Beth Polak, Jessica Robsrti A-n— rjiK-j urj ei unwe ronor n* Drown OnSnt Copy EdNort Lauren Ctonon. Taylor Mott rrfttnritl Cmilii unlit. t Ji- "-a- px,:ui— 11 p.„ k cGnortw ueroonrtn juw oaiwy, rnwp rtsnry, safari Quinn, B* Richards pH Lisa IWi Glaser for it, because that is politically incorrect. But we sure know the euphe misms for that opinion. Perhaps it’s because we want to have a reason, an excuse, for something so horrifying. If we pretend victims of sexual assault somehow precipitated their attack, then we can pretend we are invulnera ble. “I’ll never act like that or wear that, so I’ll never have to deal with this.” But we are all involved men and women. By using victim-blaming rhet oric, we discourage victims of sexual assault from reporting the crime, from pressing charges and from seeking help. In the United States, less than 10 percent of all rapes are reported to the police, according to Freedman. We create a culture of shame that silences women and allows sexual assault to continue. We excuse the actions of rap ists by turning our atten tion toward the victim rather than the perpetra tor. Instead, we must think critically, speak according ly, act with empathy and just do better. We must demand more from our selves and our friends, male and female. We must take ownership of this frightening campus issue. Sexual assault is not just a women’s issue, but one that threatens basic human rights. Show your support on Facebook by joining the “Victim Blaming Awareness” group and attending its kick-off event, “I’m a playa, but I don’t play the blame game,” today in Tate Plaza. If you know someone who has been sexually assaulted or raped, help alleviate their fears of scrutiny. Encourage them to go to the police and seek pro fessional help. If you are a survivor, there are resourc es to help you in the com munity, including The North Georgia Cottage and the Sexual Assault Center of Northeast Georgia. It’s not your fault. You have the right to keep living and endure no matter what anyone says. Lisa Glaser is a junior from Athens majoring in broadcast news Advtaor EdMoram Honorw Assistant oaran jeen uover •-- * r dia n.u .m Hecrunmem tonor Bars omnw Senior Reporter Dolts Duncan SMI WrlMn: Strttn Mi, AJ Archtr, Jtton Axelrod, John Bantu Rytn Hick, Mich Bkxnait, Rtchtl Q. Bowere. KtMy Byrd Anno Comaughkw. Adam Cartaon, AIM Carpenter, Meiaea Cohtn, IJndaey Cook, Keiy Corbet, OtrM Cuntn, ChrMophtr D'AnWo. Jacob Damns. Ctata DtSandt. baran jean uover r ywr ttoo. Micnew Fnzpartck, Brians Gardamart, Sarah Qlarratana. Emily Grant, Anltht Hedge, Variant Heradt, Draw Hooka, T. Patrick Hoopoe, BVy Hulaay, KMhryn Inga*. Jan Inglaa. Shawn Janard. Edward (dm, Haalhar Kinney. Mat Laughtn. Darcy laru. Polina Martova, Opinions fthe continual opposition to repealing V" . y teir is getting really OLD and We must arrest Wikileaks’ founder As a journalist, lam almost required to believe in the pri macy of the First Amendment, that freedom of the press is a keystone of our democra cy. So, The New York Times’ con tinuing coverage of the release of some 250,000 American diplomatic messages excites me on a deeply nerdy level. The previous documents released by Wikileaks concerning the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan chiefly served to confirm beliefs already widely held by experts. In much the same way, the latest documents represent a diplomatic embarrassment —but little else. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton may have more work this week than last, but no one is surprised that U.S. diplomats think the flam boyant Italian prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, likes to party. Upon receipt of the documents, the Times carefully reviewed and considered their affect. After con sultation with the Defense Department, the Times redacted some parts of the documents which were sensitive to national security. At The Red & Black, we face a similar challenge on a daily basis, though on a much smaller scale. In crime reporting, we follow the lead of most other news organizations by publishing the names of those who allegedly perpetrate crimes. In many cases, we do not publish the names of the victims, even though those names are matter of public record. Wikileaks’ founder Julian Assange served as the middleman in the affair, allegedly receiving the documents from an Army private, Bradley Manning, and passing them along to the Times and sever al European papers. But he didn’t leave the decision to publish up to those organizations. He published the documents without redactions on his website. By doing so, Assange caused severe harm to national interests. More importantly, he may have threatened the lives of previously secret American sympathizers in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan. Christianity discussion creates political divide Like Devon Young (“Don’t per vert the lessons of Christ,” Dec. 6), I too have met a variety of Christians, from the charitable to the misanthropic. But to call one “true” and the other “false” is more difficult to do than Young believes. To label the homophobic, war loving Christians she describes as “ignorant, arrogant, misinformed, intolerant and simple-minded” is quite fair. But we cannot forget that prophets in the Bible repeatedly commit atrocities and that gays are explicitly condemned in both Testaments. Yes, much of the Biblical geno cide occurs in the Old Testament, Our Staff Jama McOonough. Maredith McKay. Kadiipi Merest. David Mkchal. Deanna Mkchal, Stephanie Moodia, Cody Nichalaon, Tunda Opuneekkt, Nick Partite, Mlchaal Procheska, Aapah Smlh, Adma Solomon, Nathan Sorensen, Tlrtany Stevone, Zack Taylor, Ambar Thomas, Katie Valentina. Paige Varner, tv* vatqu*z, M*ry vvamw, tnnn waioo. rvatnanna weise rtJii 11l filing S-i --vVRW rnOlOjnptW Wes DUnKonSfNp AL .l - - f\ fi-.fc.... lieiem i 1 nO®OQt*pfi*a*- n r_g. I at— i/-- . h.l—i- ■ ueagen, trrwy ivaroi, Maagan naaay, rwnania mcwn, ratasna ram aj naynoios junanr>e upenufen. jonna Wafer, Dina Zoian Papa Daalgnara Rachel G. Bowere. Amanda Jonaa, Ana IfahalniM Al-i-i—l tain—. r>r,KA-in f*|||.|i AL—l— n 11 AanaKova onnwopne? Misar, nouow uniay, unanee nuason, Adam Wynn t Robbie Ottley Here’s where I disagree most starkly with Assange’s methods. Freedom of information is excep tionally important to a healthy democratic society. I’m proud that even though the U.S. government makes mistakes, we continue to be among the world’s leaders in press freedoms. But with the development of the Internet has come the idea that all information should be free regardless of legal, political or moral reasoning to the contrary. Not only does this belief fly in the face of hundreds of years of prece dent, but in its purest form would harm modem society. A front-page profile of Assange in the Times told how many of Wikileaks’ former volunteers split with him over the issue of full dis closure. And while there’s plenty of room for disparaging Assange’s character and motivations, I’ll leave that to the observations of the Times reporters. I’m more interested in the fact that Assange broke the law. The golden precedent for all press censorship cases in the U.S. is the 1971 Supreme Court decision New York Times Cos. v. United States. The Court overturned an injunction which had briefly stopped the publication of the Vietnam-era secret Pentagon Papers in the Times. They ruled the publication of those documents did not represent a “grave and irreparable danger.” Therefore, the Times, the other papers and probably the organiza tion Wikileaks cannot be prevented from publishing the documents, particularly after the redaction of sensitive passages. Assange’s is a different case, and prosecuting him could have dan gerous free speech implications. But unlike whistleblowers such as Manning and the Times, whose intent is to educate the public, Mailbox E-mail and letters from our readers but it’s just as divine (and thus canonic) as the New Testament. Young’s “false” Christians may not support many of Jesus’ ideas (wel fare, etc.), but they are just as devout as the Christians of JubUee. What we should be pondering is how a supposedly God-inspired holy text could be so contradictory not only to our modern-day morali ty, but also within itself. ALAN REESE Senior, Savannah Music performance and Music theory Devon Young is right to criticize those who use the Christian pulpit to preach a message of intolerance and self-promotion (“Don’t pervert the lessons of Christ,” Dec. 6) the Gospel Is, and always will be, about love and sacrifice. Some of Editorial board members induds Robert Camas, Courtney Holbrook, Carey OTM, Median Ptonan. Megan Thornton and Joe tMtome ADVERTISING: 706433-3001 Advertising Director: Natalia McClure Student Ad Manager Lauren Jonaa Territory Managtra Sarah Cartton. Ami Lewsnthal tnwoa mm Manager natty wirnner Account Exacuttvea Carolyn Even, Andrew Love, Sarah Overstreet, Kelly Pierce, Rebecca Tome Saiee Aaeoctatoe: Nick Hamer, Austin Landen, Zach Smith Advertising Assistants Laurel Holland. Emily Johns Ctaaslflsda Representative Jenna Vines Circulation Meneger Blake Molina Creative Assistant Olivia Scarborough Phone (706) 433-3002 | Fkx (706) 433-3033 opinions@randb.com | www.redandbiack.com 540 Baxter Street, Athens, Ga. 30605 Assange’s actions show him to be clearly anti-American. This affects how his case should be considered. The leak in the Pentagon Papers case, Daniel Ellsberg, did face charges, though they were thrown out when a judge ruled the evi dence against him had been obtained through improper means. In a similar way, could Assange face charges? “Absolutely, and I think they’re trying to,” said Kent Middleton, head of Grady’s Department of Journalism and a professor special izing in media law. “The case could be made that he violated our 1917 Espionage Act, and specifically he would appear to have willfully dis seminated confidential and secret information, wrongfully acquired." No, the cables’ revelation that American diplomats believe China thinks it can control the Web isn’t the same as painting anew target for terrorists. But the cables remain secret for a reason: to allow Americans to advance our nation’s foreign policy interests as best as possible. President Wilson may have called for “open covenants, openly arrived at,” but the principles of politics mean that full transparency can never be attained. Any government that tries to abide by the principle of absolute transparency will be unable to accomplish anything. The Times should be applauded for continuing a proud tradition of truth, especially since such trans parency plays a major role in keep ing the U.S. government from plot ting secret Third World coups. But Assange knowingly violated the law of the United States. We don’t have to treat the two-bit muckraker like he’s Osama bin Laden, and we don’t have to send the Army after him. Nevertheless, the United States should issue a warrant for Julian Assange’s arrest. - Robbie Ottley is a sophomore from Marietta majoring in history and political science and is a sports uniter and page designer for The Red & Black the conclusions she draws concern me, however. To claim that “war supporters” and “most fiscal conservatives” are not real Christians, she indicts as heretics millions of Americans who believe, for example, that warfight ing can be just when used to depose the wicked and free their subjects; that social welfare can be better administered by localities (the church, certainly!) and is not the proper role of the state; that capitalism is good, having brought material security to countless mil lions. In making these assumptions, she confuses her own statist politi cal preferences for obligatory Christian practice. MATTHEW BLAKE SEITZ Freshman, Coppell, Texas Political science Assletini Production Manager Joshua Tray Barnett Production Ass Manta NicolMte Childs, Jemi Chiu, PriacHa Kathe, Elame Ketch Production Manage: Sam Pitted Pubiehar Harry Montevideo Offlea Manager Em Beaaley Aeeletant Office Manager Megan Yue Cleaning Pareon Mary Jonaa Tke Rad took la puUahed Monday Hough Frtday M and tortng aamaatara and each Thunday aummar eemesrtr, except botoaya and exam period*, by Die Rad A Black PutteNng Company Inc., a norvprokt campue nawapapar not atlHatad with the University at Georgia Subeatpton rale: $195 par year.