Silence doesn't condone rape
Benjamin Schack
Freshman, Keenan Hall
"Who is worse, the man who rapes or the man who condones it with his silence?" This is the question posed by Christopher Reyes in his April 9 letter to The Observer. Personally, I find the question nothing less than offensive.
Rape is wrong. There is no doubt that rape is wrong, and it is a tragedy that it exists anywhere in the world, especially at our beloved university. Apparently, due to personal naíveté, I didn't realize that people don't know rape is wrong. I think rape is an action that is so horrifically, obviously and inherently immoral that people shouldn't need a reminder that it is wrong. I, too, would like to commend the women of Notre Dame and Saint Mary's for speaking out about the horrors of rape. Their testimony has helped increase awareness, which can do nothing but help when it comes to prevention.
The supposed silence of men at Notre Dame, however, does not imply that we condone rape. Nobody has spoken out denouncing murder either, but that certainly doesn't mean that we condone it. And it absolutely does not mean that we are worse than actual murderers. People may say that the two crimes are too different to make this comparison, but I don't think they are. The effects caused by rape can conceivably end a life, although not always in such a physical sense. But we all know murder is wrong; it is a painfully obvious fact. Just because we haven't publicly stated this doesn't mean we condone it.
Perhaps there are people on this campus who don't know rape is wrong. I highly doubt it, but for those men who did not know this, I pity you and hope that you are enlightened immediately. Rapists are criminals and social monsters, and I have to think they have heard before that rape is wrong. Maybe publicly stating this will prevent some rape, somewhere.
Awareness and prevention are vital and should be stressed; men need to understand exactly what rape is and there are some at this university who don't quite understand the concept. But a failure to speak out against rape does not imply that anybody condones it. And, more importantly, a failure to speak out against rape certainly does not make one worse than an actual rapist. The fact that this question was even brought up and this comparison ever made is nothing less than insulting.
Mr. Reyes' intentions were admirable, but his flawed logic and his final question was simply offensive. Yes, rape is wrong. But just because men at our university have not publicly stated this fact does not mean they condone it, and it definitely does not make them worse than actual rapists.
All Viewpoint Stories for Thursday, April 13, 2000
