RAPE CRISIS

HEALING

When the cold rains came last autumn, suddenly ending a bright summer, I felt my life was falling apart. All my dreams were gone. I had nothing left to believe in. So I ran; gave away or stashed almost everything I owned, and moved to Cleveland. A good friend, a Rape Crisis advocate, took me in, saved me from the snow, shared her family with me, and she listened. I told her how bad I felt, and she told me how much she enjoyed living with me. After a while, I started feeling better, so I took R.C.C. training. I needed to be useful.

I continued living with my friend and in the next few months began working at the Center. Almost compulsively, I talked to one of the staff members every time I saw her. She almost always listened with total attention, soaked up my prob. lems like a sponge, smiled, sympathized, and told me nice things about myself. I felt I was getting free counseling.

Changing my life has made me feel like a teenager again. If I were an adolescent and needed role models, these advocates would be my first choice. I would listen to my friend projecting warmth and concern over the telephone to a victim, and I would feel better myself.

Working in the women's movement, we have learned that the most important part of our lives are our own feelings and the way we act on those feelings. If we feel good about ourselves, we will probably be good to other people. We can heal one another. I need to share the good energy I have because other women have touched me and helped me to believe in myself again.

Holding a sister's hand in a crisis is obviously only a band-aid on the total problem of rape in our violent, competitive society. We need to eliminate the reasons men rape. I believe this is possible only through radical social and economic change. Hopefully, the time is coming when we can feed everyone, we can all have meaningful work, and a decent place to live. But meanwhile women are still being raped. I want to help. The victim is hurt now... Barbara Louise

BOYCOTT

A national boycott has been called against Elektra, Asylum, Warner and Atlantic Record Companies (all subsidiaries of Warner Communications, Inc.). These are the companies which have made the most blatant use of sexual violence against women on their album covers and in their advertising. The boycott was called for by California N.O.W. and Women Against Violence Against Women (WAVAW). For more information write WAVAW, Feminist Women's Health Center, 1112 Crenshaw Blvd., Los Angeles, CA. 90019.

THE MEDIA

Cleveland Magazine has once again proved in its May 1977 issue that it is firmly dedicated to the reactionary attitudes of sexism, elitism, and racism. During the last year the pages of Cleveland Magazine have been filled with a preponderance of accolades to the rich and the powerful. The May issue is particularly offensive from a woman's point of view.

The cover story is called "How One Man Lives the Ultimate Male Fantasy of Women, Money, and Notoriety". The photograph, which typically is in poor taste, is of a homely man in a three piece business suit surrounded by five beautiful young women wearing low cut gowns. One of the women is actually kneeling at his feet. The photograph is entitled "Ted Stepien and his Angels".

In reading the article we learn--and this is certainly not news--that the "ultimate male fantasy" is the domination and control of as many women as possible. The women in turn must pretend to love it and are duly rewarded for their compliance with remarks (compliments?) about their bodies from THE BOSS. Stepien assures us that he pays the women in his business very well as long as they are submissive, loyal, subordinate and nonfeminist. He has nothing against controlling men, but it's so much easier with women that the staff of his advertising company is primarily female, except, or course, for the top executive posts.

The attitudes which are promoted, indeed glorified, in this article are completely anti-woman.

IF YOU HAVE BEEN RAPED CALL THE RAPE HOT LINE

391-3912

LAST ALL-CENTER MEETING

June 15 is the date of our next All-Center meeting. It will be the last one until the fall. John Lawson from Safe-Space, the shelter for runaways, will be present to discuss problems concerning juveniles. The meeting will begin at 7:30 in our offices.

SUMMER SCHEDULING

Our busy season is approaching. In the last couple of weeks our hospital calls have increased a lot, especially during the day. If you are going to have more time to give or if your schedule is going to change (vacations, school, etc.), please give us as much notice as possible. We will also be having new advocates starting to work soon. Please try to become acquainted with them and help train them as the opportunity arises. We will need to pull together this summer.

cpf

HOT LETTER

THE POLITICS OF RAPE

Around Thanksgiving of 1975 there was a series of rapes in downtown Buffalo. There was a great deal of publicity around them, and a composit sketch of the rapist was published. Downtown merchants were concerned that fear of assault might cut down on Christmas shopping. Kenneth Johnson became a suspect when a security guard at his office told police that Johnson resembled the composite drawing. Johnson heard of this and contacted the police, offering to talk to them. He was told that it would not be necessary. The next day, however, plainclothes detectives arrested him at work, beat him and charged him with resisting

arrest.

At least one rape very similar to the others occurred while Johnson was in jail, but by then attention was focused on the dramatic arrest and the case against Kenneth Johnson. Further reported rapes were not given much attention. One of the women involved in making the composite sketch insisted that Johnson was not the man who raped her. In fact, Johnson did not match the descriptions of the rapist very well at all.

Johnson was ultimately only charged with two of the five or six rapes that seemed to form the pattern. Those charges came to trial last month. Many of the facts which led to his arrest, including the sketch, were not admissable as evidence in court. Johnson was found innocent in one case, with no verdict in the other. The prosecutor plans to try him again on the latter case. He was also found innocent of resisting arrest.

Whose interests are served by all this? Of at least five rapes, only two victims identified Johnson as their attacker despite a prejudicial line. up. What about the women who says that Johnson is not the man who raped her? As a source for the composite sketch, she was important to the police. Later when she said that Johnson was not the man, she received somewhat less attention. Do the police usually circulate composite pictures and information about rapists hoping to make an arrest, or is that only in cases that occur in shopping areas around Christmas time?

It is clear that in this and in other cases, the real concern is not about rape or the protection of women. We who are trying to end rape need to press for better police work and court procedures. But this matter certainly involved neither of those. This is a case of abuse of police power motivated by the same kind of thinking we are fighting.

Rape Crisis Centers need to oppose the abuse of legal power. The anti-rape movement cannot allow itself to become a pawn. When we allow rape to be used by commercial, law and order or racist groups, we are letting them say that rape is impor tant for its impact on business or police credibility, not for its impact on women. When we fail to protest racist tactics in a rape case, even though we may think we know the man did it and at least this time we'll get justice, we are only strengthening the very attitudes that will be used against victims whenever a white middle class man rapes.

Kenneth Johnson's case seems to be a striking example of the accusation of rape being used as a political tool against a person who is not a part of the power structure. It is important that the antirape movement is not used to justify that abuse of power. Several women's groups around Buffalo have spoken out in support of Johnson. Contributions are being solicited for his defense. Anyone wishing to donate can send money to: The Kenneth Johnson Defense Fund, P.O. Box 75, Station J. Buffalo, N.Y. 14208.

June, 1977/What She Wants/page 11