I believe Juanita Broaddrick is telling the truth about being raped by Bill Clinton. And for those of us who do, it changes everything. You may not have heard her name or story, yet, but you will. First, some background.
Almost all liberals, progressives, philogynists, feminists, sociologists, psychologists, social scientists, criminologists, egalitarians, and equal-rights supporters agree on some basic facts about rape. E.g.:
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Most rapes go unreported. The estimates and numbers vary, by country, etc., but a reasonable estimate is that even in the US today, 68% of rapes go unreported.
- Even when the crime is reported, it is unlikely to lead to an arrest and prosecution. Only about 2% of rapists (1 in 50) will ever serve a day in prison.
- Almost 80% of rapes are committed by someone known by the survivor.
- False accusations of rape are extremely low. Estimates vary, maybe 1.5% to 8% at most. Most of these involve acquaintance rape, among young adults, often with alcohol or drugs as contributing factors. The higher-end estimates are misleading, because they (including the FBI) dismiss rape charges as “unfounded” if: the victim did not try to fight off the suspect, if the alleged perpetrator did not use physical force or a weapon of some sort, if the victim did not sustain any physical injuries, if there is no physical evidence or inconsistencies between the accuser's statement and what evidence does exist. In short, false accusations are very rare. (All criminal cases deserve their day in court, of course.)
Second, most reasonable observers are aghast at the extent to which survivors of sexual assault and rape are still blamed for what happened to them — despite decades of work to stop blaming-the-victim. I’m not yet ready to tell my own story, but I recognize much in what I read here:
Survivors or rape or sexual assault are still often:
- not believed,
- slut-shamed, told they had “loose morals,”
- have their names and personal sexual life exposed to the public (no-on chooses to do this unless they feel forced to),
- blamed if they had more than one sexual partner,
- accused of lying, told that their story is false,
- accused of having some ulterior motive (personal, political, etc.),
- told they “really wanted it,”
- accused of changing their minds,
- blamed for the way they dressed, or looked, or for having a drink,
- or for allowing themselves to be alone with a man,
- disbelieved if they didn’t come forward immediately (at a time when they may be mentally reeling from the act),
- threatened with having their name exposed, being forced to testify in court, dragged through the mud if they do,
- blamed if they feel forced to see the rapist again (e.g. for work or personal reasons), as if this somehow nullifies the rape
- disbelieved based on selective ‘evidence’ (when that ‘evidence’ is simply a lack of eye-witness proof of the rape charges — a twisted logic)
- (e.g., some of Bill Cosby’s victims continued to see him, because they feared he could destroy their careers, I believe them)
- (likewise,even after Anita Hill’s harassment by Thomas, she made personal visits to him, breakfasted with him, dined with him (twice), rode alone in a car with him, and initiated eleven calls to him; I believe Hill, even though there were no witnesses),
- blamed if they initially deny things to the police (e.g., in domestic violence, a woman may deny the black eye came from her boyfriend or husband)
- persecuted if they deny it under oath (e.g. wanting to protect their family, their kids, their marriage, maybe hide from their husband that they were looking around on Craigslist, which resulted in a rape, so they deny it — but having an affair does not mean a woman can be raped),
In short, the woman is often discredited, in effect 'raping' her again in public, by denying her humanity. She is treated as a liar, scorned, dismissed, ignored.
This needs to change. And DailyKos can play a role in it. There are dozens, maybe hundreds of diaries on DailyKos that support all the above points. We can unite around this.
Update: The woman I have in mind is Juanita Broaddrick. I want to thank everyone who has Recommended this diary or its Tip Jar, so far. The 38 people who Rec’d it include: HippyWitch, i saw an old tree today, Brysynner, johanus, Iron Spider, Ericinsantarosa, Joary2016, greblos, ScrappaDoo, FloridaSNMOM, belinda ridgewood, Silencio, Nomoto, Meteor Blades, RedDan, edie Haskell, bill dog, StrayCat, NancyK, GDbot, officebss, Melaka, Scripten, MKSinSA, La Gitane, A DC Wonk, AJayne, Pay It Forward, artisan, Boadicea, Carol in San Antonio, serendipityisabitch, Black Max, TheLadyBrienne, orphanpower, Tom Anderson, samanthab, and socialistfolkstick.
The 28 people who Tipped it (so far) include: johanus, Black Max, rb608, StrayCat, NancyK, artisan, MD Roller, Carol in San Antonio, MKSinSA, serendipityisabitch, voicemail, i saw an old tree today, FloridaSNMOM, belinda ridgewood, GDbot, greblos, Iron Spider, socialistfolkstick, AJayne, Silencio, bill dog, ScrappaDoo, Brysynner, LadyLake, Melaka, aliberaldoseofskepticism, Scripten, and TheLadyBrienne.
Thank you all for your support!
For anyone who doesn’t know Juanita Broaddrick’s story, I recommend watching at least the two minutes from 3:40-5:40 of this condensed 9-minute interview. Watch all 9 minutes if you have time. Even better, watch the full 28-minute interview by Lisa Myers for NBC Dateline. It was conducted in January 1999 but not aired for 35 days, after the Senate vote on Bill Clinton’s impeachment, and up against the Grammy’s (for a nation full of scandal fatigue). The Washington Post buried it on p.A15. Lanny Davis (still a loyal foot-soldier) accused Juanita of lying: “It is not corroborated because her girlfriend saw her with a swollen lip. That doesn't make the charge of rape a fact."
Lisa Myers: "Is there any way at all that Bill Clinton could have thought this was consensual [sex]?"
Juanita Broaddrick: "No. Not with what I told him. And with how I tried to push him away. It was NOT consensual."
Lisa Myers: "You're saying that Bill Clinton sexually assaulted you. That he raped you."
Juanita: "Yes."
Myers: "You have, there's no doubt in your mind that that's what happened?"
Juanita: "No doubt whatsoever."
I believe Juanita Broaddrick. I’ve read her earlier affidavit, in the Paula Jones lawsuit against Bill Clinton for sexual assault (which Clinton settled by paying $800,000) in which Juanita denied that anything occurred. She feared it would disrupt her family and marital life if it came out. I’ve also read her follow-up testimony to the FBI, where she affirmed under oath that she had been raped by Bill Clinton, and explained her earlier reluctance to come forward about it. Her friend with whom she shared the hotel room confirms her story — she "found Mrs. Broaddrick crying and in 'a state of shock' " -- as does the man she is now married to. Both of them confirm that she told them immediately about the assault, and they saw her badly swollen lip, as described. Other friends, including Louise Ma and Susan Lewis, also confirm that she confided in them.
Yes, she attended a Clinton fund-raiser a few weeks later — still in denial, fearing for her career, trying to forget — as we know Anita Hill accepted rides from Thomas after his indecent proposals, and as various Bill Cosby victims voluntarily saw him after they were raped. This does not disprove the allegations. Indeed, as the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape writes: “It is common for victims to maintain contact with their abusers because they may still feel affection for them even though they hate the abuse. ... It is also common for some victims to maintain contact in an attempt to regain control over their assault. Others may maintain contact in an attempt to regain a feeling of normalcy." I’m sure that everyone who Rec’d and Tipped this diary will agree on this. It does not provide evidence for “disbelieving” Juanita.
This past December, Hillary Clinton was asked: “You say that all rape victims should be believed, but would you say that about Juanita Broaddrick, Kathleen Willey, and Paula Jones?” Hillary relied: "Everybody should be believed at first, until they are disbelieved based on evidence." But there is no ‘evidence’ that disproves Juanita’s allegations. Indeed, as an article on the liberal website Vox (co-founded by Markos Moulitsos) says: “if one generally believes it's important to believe the victim, it's hard to argue that this case should be an exception.” (The article is titled: “The rape allegation against Bill Clinton, explained.”)
It is an “inconvenient truth,” for some. But the truth does not make exceptions for expedience.