A short story
American politics has reached a point of stagnation. Liberals and conservatives stand in perpetual opposition and display no intention of pursuing thoughtful future avenues. The wisdom of past voices is forgotten and identity is defined in terms of difference and not shared dreams. For both liberals and conservatives, there is a dire need for redefinition. But recognition must come first.
Last week the editor asked me to write a piece on how perpetrators are victims themselves. He believed I would be the right person to write that given that I am a survivor of sexual assault and do believe that the person who raped me was a victim of certain things at certain points in his life. Nonetheless, it’s one thing to explain to a friend how you re-humanized a person you hated so you could understand why you stayed in a terrible relationship and a whole other to write a piece that feels diminishing to all the pain I experienced. My friend the editor didn’t mean to be insensitive. He understands pain and hate but in a context very different to sexual assault and harassment.
Stanford Sphere 