Rapists can be
Just know that. . .
Rapists will likely tell a different story of consent or they will accuse you trying to be a homewrecker or accuse you of entrapment.
Your family and immediate circle may not support the justice that you seek especially if the assailant has a strong standing in society.
Getting the rapist arrested and charged can be your biggest challenge. If you can get the arrest secured, then by all means go for the trial and/or fullest prosecution that you can. So many women never get their voices heard.
I champion you to fight not just for your self-esteem, but for others before and after you.
Still have questions about your encounter? Then answer these questions:
Every situation is different. There is no right or wrong answer. Your fight for women's rights and your worth is so important, but time is essential to the case.
You should also know that most women have experienced unwanted groping, non-consensual sex, and/or sexual harassment.
Local rape crisis hotlines can connect you with advocates and counselors that can assist you by listening while you talk through the ordeal to sort through the flags that you may have missed leading up to the encounter. In many instances, there is no cost for advocates to talk to you. Counselors can plan a strategy for recovery on a sliding scale.
Vulnerability is not a crime. Often times, predators can sense vulnerabilities. Everyone has times of vulnerability no matter how smart that they think they are.
An assailant becomes vulnerable as soon as you report the situation.
I hope this article will assist in your decision to report, to fight, and to heal. Healing is in the fight; not the silence.
Break the silence. You are worth it.
NOTE: I am available to speak to District Attorney offices nationwide as well as speak to college campus groups. Speaking fee is negotiable. ~Benita
In this world if you want to work toward peace, you have to work toward compromise. It starts with "listening for understanding" versus just "hearing and ignoring."
In my #round2mark3 campaign, I fought for validation of my survival story. The results were a compromise, but I am at peace with the compromise because finally someone listened for an understanding.
In the #BreonnaTaylor campaign, the public outcry was listened to for an understanding. The compromise was a 12 million dollar settlement, changes in the "no knock" law, and some criminal charges. Be at peace that some positive results came from the campaign.
This is where Black leadership could have lead Black America to understand that the Breonna Taylor battle is over, but the war will wage on for all the injustices that we continue to see daily.
There was no need to disrespect the Breonna Taylor package in public. Yell at them behind closed doors that you felt shorted, but that is how a good compromise works when no side is completely happy.
The additional protests after the criminal charges were announced reminded of a racist mindset of "my way or the highway."
As with my #round2mark3 campaign, time to move on to the next fight.
As I close out my #round2mark3 petition, I lay to rest a part of me that wanted justice for myself. I did my part. It is completely in God's hands now. Faith without work is dead. My efforts were necessary for my closure.
In 1990, there was no social media platforms. No Internet. The world was disconnected. The disposal of my rape and kidnapping case is probably not the only case disposed of in the manner that it was. It is my belief that two deals were made. One to placate me to thinking that all Mark Lee Murray III needed was counseling. (There is no proof that he completed counseling, and even if he did get counseling, it wasn't enough to stop his future documented pattern of violence against others.) The second deal was probably an unspoken deal behind my back.
Nonetheless, I have full rights to my story. There is no doubts about my ordeal. I proved my case beyond a shadow of a doubt. My moderate symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder are fully validated.
However, proving the crime is not enough to fight the deal that was made surrounding the dismissal of the charges. The charges were not dismissed because rape and kidnapping didn't happen. The charges were dismissed for reasons beyond my control.
Those same reasons bar the charges from being filed again. So the justice system works for the defendant in this case. Social media works against the defendant because public opinion is a pseudo court in itself. I won the #round2mark3 campaign. Mark Lee Murray III won the freedom of getting away with rape and kidnapping legally speaking.
It's a tie. I wished the match could have been wrapped up sooner, but God has a Master plan.
