South Sudan is not a country we often think about. One of the poorest countries in the world, it has been undergoing a vicious civil war for 5 years, a war that is as brutal as any war. As is often the case in these kinds of conflicts, rape is a daily occurrence, mass rape wielded as a weapon to intimidate, conquer, punish, instill fear. Rare is the woman who has not been raped, in a culture where the shame and stigma rape brings is enough for many to be thrown out of their home and Continue reading “Rape in South Sudan”
Tag: rape
Nate Parker and The Issue of Rape
I’ve just finished reading several articles about the Nate Parker controversy relating to his having been accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 1999 when still a teenager and while being a student at Penn State ( one of the most thoughtful was one in Slate). Parker was cleared and his co- writer, Jean Celestin, who was then his classmate was also accused, convicted and given a 6 months sentence. He was eventually cleared upon appeal. After reading all these points of view I am left with a question: Is our reaction to Nate Parker, the actor, writer, director of the movie Birth of a Nation, a movie about a rebellion led by Nat Turner, meant to make a statement about the history of African Americans, based on his case or is it a product of our current heightened Continue reading “Nate Parker and The Issue of Rape”