Boston Criminal Lawyer Blog
This past weekend saw a bit of nice weather. What better time to protest Massachusetts sex crimes against women? What better time to march around scantily clad and chastise men who gawk?
In short….what better time for a “Boston Slutwalk”?
You think I am kidding, right? Ol’ Sam’s sarcastic humor has gotten the best of him and he is crossing the line, huh? Well, not at all.
This past weekend, there was a parade of men and women, the later primarily wearing only micro minis and bras. It was called by its participants the “Boston Slutwalk” and it wound its way from Government Center to the Common the marchers, chanting, “However we dress, wherever we go, yes means yes, and no means no,”
People stared, but no one dared to act in the animalistic way one might expect. As the Boston Herald put it, “you don’t mess with 200 “sluts” on a mission.”
Boston’s “Slutwalk” was one of an international series of such things that began earlier this year when a silver-tongued Toronto police officer allegedly told a group of York University law students that the best way to avoid getting raped was to not dress like a slut.
How delicately and tastefully put.
The points made by various of the marchers ranged to some extent. For example, one young lady, who apparently had been a Massachusetts rape victim in 2007, said that “Just because I want to go out and have a good time doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want with me.”
Another protester invoked the famous name of Phoebe Prince of the now almost legendary South Hadley bullying case. The woman explained that Miss Prince’s bullying included being called an “Irish slut” and “whore” after having had a relationship with a boy at school.
“The word slut “. . . comes with such consequences that many of us rightly work to avoid it at all costs,” she told the crowd. “But not today. . . . Today we come together to say, ‘You can call us that name, but we will not shut up.’ . . . You can never again use it to excuse the violence that is done to us under that name every single (expletive) day.”
In fact, we understand that rape is a crime of vfiolence. This is what the Toronto officer’s statments so objectionable. Well, that and that fact he was blaming the victim…!
Attorney Sam’s Take On MA Sexual Assault And “Sluts”
Most people get this. Some folks do not. Whatever the circumstances, forced sexual encounters are wrong and very, very illegal.
If you somehow thought that you had the right to touch a woman in an offensive or sexual manner because of the way she dresses or acts, you could not be more wrong.
“But Sam, she was really teasing me!”
Too bad. Walk away. Whatever you do, do not assume it means that you can tackle her.
Think of it as if some guy was making fun of you. If you haul off and belt him, you would need a Boston assault lawyer (assuming it happenned in Beantown.) Ok, that’s an obvious one. However, there are some e people who do not realize the right to say never ends.
For example, let’s say you are in a relationship and you and your date are kissing, hugging and all that nice stuff. All of a sudden she changes her mind and says that things have to stop. Right there and then.
Things stop. Right there and then.
Anything else becomes date rape.
So, the protesters are correct in their message…if not their method. The attack on the word “slut” seems off point. The prancing around in the undies seems a bit like walking the street with dollar bills sticking out of your pocket to protest thievery.
The bottom line, though, is important. nobody ever loses the right to say “no”. Not a “slut”, not a prostitute….no one.
If you forgot this little point or are accused of violating it, you should retain the services of an experienced criminal defense attorney. If you would like that attorney to be me, please free to call me at 617-492-3000 to arrange a free initial consultation..
To view the article upon which this blog is based, please go to http://www.bostonherald.com/news/regional/view.bg?articleid=1336388
