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Serena Williams says 16-year-old rape victim 'shouldn't have put herself in that position'
UK Daily Mail ^ | June 18, 2013 | Helen Pow

Posted on 06/19/2013 7:14:07 AM PDT by ConservativeStatement

Serena Williams has sparked an intense backlash after she suggested the 16-year-old victim in the Steubenville, Ohio, rape case was asking to be assaulted.

The world Number 1 tennis star made the astonishing indictment in an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, which was posted online on Tuesday.

In the article, Williams said the victim 'shouldn't have put herself in that position' and described her as 'lucky.' Some are already labeling the 31-year-old's remarks the most controversial of her career.

(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: rape; serena; steubenville; tennis; williams
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(headline was modified to fit)
1 posted on 06/19/2013 7:14:07 AM PDT by ConservativeStatement
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To: ConservativeStatement

Todd Akin call you office.


2 posted on 06/19/2013 7:15:34 AM PDT by Ahithophel (Communication is an art form susceptible to sudden technical failure)
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To: ConservativeStatement

If she was a Republican, they’d be crucifying her right now for saying this.


3 posted on 06/19/2013 7:17:12 AM PDT by FlingWingFlyer (23,116,441 households on Food Stamps! Now that's what I call HISTORICAL!!!)
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To: ConservativeStatement
Oh, this one is going to tie the liberals in knots. If Rush Limbaugh or any conservative had said it, there would be no question, it would topic number one on all the news channels and they left would be calling for their head....however...Serena Williams is a minority and a women to boot. So if they attack her they could be accused of being racist and sexist, yet if they don't then the message gets left unchallenged. Decisions...decisions...
4 posted on 06/19/2013 7:17:57 AM PDT by apillar
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To: ConservativeStatement

It always makes one a target to speak the Truth.


5 posted on 06/19/2013 7:18:01 AM PDT by bboop (does not suffer fools gladly)
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To: ConservativeStatement

I remember one of the female tennis players, I think it was Chris Evert or maybe Martina Hingis, just simply said the girls on the Tennis tour do not like the Williams Sisters.

I will say they look very, well athletic.


6 posted on 06/19/2013 7:18:05 AM PDT by yarddog (There Are Three Things That Remain--Faith, Hope, and Love--and,the Greatest of These is Love..)
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To: ConservativeStatement

Serena is correct. The first responsibility of avoiding harm is oneself. If you haven’t taken reasonable precautions to avoiding harmful situations, you have contributed to your situation.

Having said that, having failed to,take reasonable precautions does not remove one iota of responsibility from the person doi,g the harm.


7 posted on 06/19/2013 7:19:07 AM PDT by Jonty30 (What Islam and secularism have in common is that they are both death cults)
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To: FlingWingFlyer

I don’t know enough about the case to comment but in general when men make such controversial statements, feminists often call for women to be included in positions of power...the military for instance. Well, here is a powerful female and she formed an opinion.


8 posted on 06/19/2013 7:19:09 AM PDT by ConservativeStatement ("World Peace 1.20.09.")
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To: apillar
Funny you mentioned Rush but last night I had a conversation with someone regarding his Fluke comments. There was a radio host in Miami, since passed away, who was gay and very outspoken against religion and Conservatives. However, he despised Hillary Clinton and I know of at least one instance where he called her the B-word. Imagine if Rush said that?
9 posted on 06/19/2013 7:21:18 AM PDT by ConservativeStatement ("World Peace 1.20.09.")
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To: ConservativeStatement

The truth is that both the girl and the boys were in the wrong. Except the girl was punished first, for being stupid. And most of the boys evaded punishment.

In this case, it is something like when children take nude pictures of themselves and send them to their friends, then are arrested for producing child pornography.

Children are compelled to want to be sexual, and to want to be adult. It is a biological imperative. But to prevent this, for the good of society, parents and other adults have to intervene. Their failure to keep good discipline over children is the third stupid mistake in this.


10 posted on 06/19/2013 7:24:11 AM PDT by yefragetuwrabrumuy (Best WoT news at rantburg.com)
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To: ConservativeStatement

Neil Rogers. Good radio personality. Horrible person.


11 posted on 06/19/2013 7:24:28 AM PDT by FlJoePa ("Success without honor is an unseasoned dish; it will satisfy your hunger, but it won't taste good")
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To: ConservativeStatement

Williams/Akin 2016!


12 posted on 06/19/2013 7:24:37 AM PDT by montag813
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To: ConservativeStatement

Next up, the liberal non-apology apology, “I’m sorry if anyone was offended....”


13 posted on 06/19/2013 7:25:01 AM PDT by treetopsandroofs (Had FDR been GOP, there would have been no World Wars, just "The Great War" and "Roosevelt's Wars".)
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To: ConservativeStatement
This is the new black-and-white (in which, to be sure, what used to be called "black" is now white, and so on). As soon as somebody becomes a VICTIM, that person is not only immune from criticism but raised to the status of what was formerly called sainthood.

Not only that, but some victims clearly outrank others. Thus, an adult lesbian who has a sexual encounter with an underage teen in the school bathroom cannot justly be prosecuted for it because gays now outrank everybody else--blacks, women, sexually assaulted children, dead babies, you name it.

Take issue with this viewpoint? Then you are a HATER!

14 posted on 06/19/2013 7:25:12 AM PDT by madprof98
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To: ConservativeStatement
She's issued a statement:

“What happened in Steubenville was a real shock for me. I was deeply saddened. For someone to be raped, and at only sixteen, is such a horrible tragedy! For both families involved – that of the rape victim and of the accused. I am currently reaching out to the girl’s family to let her know that I am deeply sorry for what was written in the Rolling Stone article. What was written – what I supposedly said – is insensitive and hurtful, and I by no means would say or insinuate that she was at all to blame.

I have fought all of my career for women’s equality, women’s equal rights, respect in their fields – anything I could do to support women I have done. My prayers and support always goes out to the rape victim. In this case, most especially, to an innocent sixteen year old child.”

15 posted on 06/19/2013 7:25:42 AM PDT by Bubba Ho-Tep ("More weight!"--Giles Corey)
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To: ConservativeStatement

Thank you Serena. Blame that victim.


16 posted on 06/19/2013 7:25:53 AM PDT by AD from SpringBay (We deserve the government we allow.)
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To: ConservativeStatement

From a quote from Serena.

‘She’s 16, why was she that drunk where she doesn’t remember? It could have been much worse. She’s lucky. Obviously I don’t know, maybe she wasn’t a virgin, but she shouldn’t have put herself in that position, unless they slipped her something, then that’s different.’

Serena is right on this.

The girl should have not gone to the party and drink alcohol. She put herself in a dangerous situation. If she used her head, she could have avoided it.

What the guys did was wrong too. No doubt about that.


17 posted on 06/19/2013 7:27:57 AM PDT by moviefan8
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To: Bubba Ho-Tep

She is now the victim in “blame the victim”?


18 posted on 06/19/2013 7:28:46 AM PDT by ConservativeStatement ("World Peace 1.20.09.")
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To: ConservativeStatement
Williams said the victim 'shouldn't have put herself in that position' and described her as 'lucky.'

I find it astonishing that anyone would disagree.

Any young woman who is in the company of a group of young men is putting herself at great risk. She is essentially stating, by her actions, that she trusts them not to do anything to her against her will. Such trust is often justified, but not always, unfortunately.

Consuming alcohol in such company just makes the situation infinitely worse. She was apparently, in this case, unaware of what was being done to her. She put herself totally, probably without being aware of doing so, in the hands of whoever was around, and trusted in their decency and honor. Appears her trust was betrayed.

Was she "lucky?" She could easily have wound up physically raped, as in "rape rape," which she apparently wasn't and as a result presently be pregnant or infected with a number of STDs. She also could have wound up severely physically injured or dead.

So, yeah, she was lucky relative to what could have happened to her.

Does any of this excuse the behavior of these young males who should not be honored with the name "men?" Of course not. Nobody can possibly despise them more than I do.

Serena said she 'shouldn't have put herself in that position.' The inverse of this statement, if you are going to disagree with her, is that she SHOULD have put herself in that position, that it was a wise and intelligent decision to make. Going off at 16 with boys she doesn't know and then getting too drunk to be aware of what is happening.

Is anybody seriously going to contend that this was a wise decision on her part?

19 posted on 06/19/2013 7:29:40 AM PDT by Sherman Logan
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To: bboop
No young woman should ever be so reckless and irresponsible. That doesn't make the guys innocent, but she should have been a little smarter about herself.

Growing up, my mother said don't ever go where you are the only girl and do NOT go or stay where you don't know anyone.

20 posted on 06/19/2013 7:30:04 AM PDT by SMARTY ("The man who has no inner-life is a slave to his surroundings. "Henri Frederic Amiel)
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