Rape in New Delhi
On December 16th 2012 in New Delhi, India, a young woman was gang raped. She was 23 years old. After watching a movie, the physiotherapy college student was picked up by a bus, where six men brutally raped and beat her. Unfortunately, the young woman died two weeks later in the hospital. At the moment, the five adult men who raped her face charges of rape, kidnapping and murder. If found guilty, they would be put to death. The sixth male would face a separate juvenile court.
Over the past few years, the amount of reported rape has been increasing in India. According to BBC News, in 2012, there were 582 rape cases reported New Delhi alone [1]. While in many cases rape is still kept silent, the increasing social awareness regarding this problem has allowed protestors to address a traditionally “invisible” issue.
Thus as news broke about this horrific gang rape, insensitive comments from politicians and the government’s record of ineffective prosecution of rapists and protection of women marked a boiling point in India’s frustration.
The gang rape sparked outrage throughout India and beyond. Fed up with politicians’ indifference towards rape cases, many Indian activists have taken to the streets to demand for greater protection for women and stronger punishments for rapists. The protest has slowly spread from
India to other parts of the world; as people from Nepal, New Zealand, and elsewhere unite in solidarity against rape culture.
That being said, attitudes surrounding rape must change. Our society needs to work harder in tearing down a culture of rape that persists in all countries. We cannot use mainstream Eurocentric misconceptions, such as the idea that rape happens more in other countries (specifically
Third World countries), as a way to say “it’s not our problem”. According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network), 1 out of every 6 American women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime[2]. Rape impacts everyone: survivors and non-survivors alike.
As such, the world would benefit if we all could come together to bring about the end of rape. We must educate the public, crush patriarchy, and do whatever it takes to end gender violence.
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To read the news article published about this crime visit: http://
news.yahoo.com/new-delhi-attack–the-victim-s-story-191941228.html
