Tag: women rise up

Living Well

I will NOT sit by and do nothing to help

Crystal Varner Parker

Today,  Dr. Christine Blasey Ford testified before the Senate Judiciary  Committee regarding her attack by Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett  Kavanaugh.  She told them that when she was 15 years of  age Brett Kavanaugh attacked her, while Mark Judge sat by and did  nothing to help.

Every 98 seconds an American is sexually assaulted.

  • 9 out of 10 victims  of rape are female.

  • 1 in 6 women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape.

  • 63,000  children are the victims of sexual abuse each year, and a majority of  child victims are between the ages of 12 and 17 years of age.

    (statistics pulled from RAINN)

Twenty-one senators listened to her testimony today. A testimony that she was  terrified to give today. Several senators were  sympathetic to what she  has endured and acknowledged her bravery. On  the other hand, we have other senators that merely stated they believe  that she believes her testimony.

This is not enough.

If  you have thoughts on the confirmation of our next Supreme Court Justice  of the United States, I encourage you to take the time to do something.  Call and write a letter to your senators. In addition  to calling and writing a letter to your senators, I would encourage you  to contact the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.  These  senators are currently deciding on the president’s nomination. This  committee is tasked with whether or not they recommend  the entire senate vote on confirming Judge Brett Kavanaugh as an  associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United State. This appointment is for life.

 Find your representative here.

Here are the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee

There  are 100 senators on the United States Senate and it will take 51 voting  yes to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. There are  currently 54 Republican Senators on the United States  Senate that could vote yes. There are 21 members on the Senate  Judiciary Committee, and 11 of these member are Republican Senators.  Their vote could and will make a difference. Your contact will  matter! Do not sit by and do nothing. Each person is hyperlinked  to their contact page. If it helps I’ve included a sample letter  below – all you have to do is copy and paste the text, address it to the  appropriate senator, sign your name, and send.

 

Elected Official,

As a  citizen of the United States, I want to urge you to block the Supreme  Court nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh. Most importantly, we should  never support a candidate who has a questionable  background when the future of our judicial system is on line.  Preventing people with questionable character from gaining positions of  power and influence is the single most important issue facing BOTH  parties right now. Please do your part by blocking the  nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh.

I  want you to know that I am an independent voter that firmly believes  that the issue of sexual abuse and assault is not about being liberal or  conservative. This is about enforcing the rule of law  in order to protect our citizens, saying this is wrong, and holding  offenders accountable. I want to make sure that you understand that  someone can commit sexual assault without actually having sex. I want  you to understand that women are angry because there  is a history of not listening to women when they bring forth their  claim. Women should not be put on trial to prove their traumatic  experience. Living through the assault or abuse was bad enough, but  recounting their experience repeatedly is unbearable.

Most  of all, please remember that our children are watching how we respond  to this. What would you say to your daughter, granddaughter, niece, son,  grandson, or nephew that said they had been sexually  abused or assaulted? Would you tell them it wasn’t true or that it  doesn’t matter? Should they have to see their abuser rise to power while  they are left reliving their pain? I’m angry and tired of the rhetoric  that says this is a partisan issue. This is an  issue for all Americans regardless of party lines. We need to listen to  these victims, sit with them in their pain, and thank them for their  courage when they speak about a horrific moment in their life. 

Please do what is right and choose someone fitting of this important position.

Respectfully,

C