I am writing in response to Christine Long’s letter in which she states her objections to the phrase, “Don’t Rape, Masturbate.” Ms. Long is absolutely correct on all points. Masturbation would not prevent rape, as rape is a crime about power and control, not sex. This phrase is offensive in particular to rape victims/survivors who have a very real understanding of this crime. Themes for rallies against sexual violence should not be “hilarious” and using language such as this in a public way would set the rape prevention movement back many steps. I wholeheartedly agree with all of these statements, and I applaud Ms. Long for using the anger she felt to courageously write a letter to address these remarks.In my years as a sexual assault service provider, I have had the pleasure of working with Deborah Schipper, who is one of the most dedicated people in the field of rape prevention. One of the qualities I admire most in Ms. Schipper is her ability to creatively incorporate humor into presenting information about this emotionally painful topic of rape. The phrase was, as Ms. Schipper mentioned in her apology, stated in a meeting of sexual assault service providers who, after many exhausting hours, used humor as a coping mechanism. No one ever intended this phrase to actually become a theme for the rally last year. While relieving stress in a private forum might have been therapeutic to service providers, no one involved ever thought to utilize such a phrase to address the very serious subject of sexual violence at a public rally. In reality, the theme for the 1999 Rally at the Statehouse was “End the Silence, Stop Sexual Violence!”I sincerely regret any harm that Ms. Long or any other survivors may have experienced. It would also be unfortunate if the seriousness of the work being done to end sexual violence was diminished in any way. As a staff member of The Sexual Assault Response Network of Central Ohio, I am truly dedicated to providing intervention to rape survivors and will continue striving toward the highest level of sensitivity for all survivors.
Heather Herron Murphy Volunteer Coordinator The Sexual Assault ResponseNetwork of Central Ohio (SARNCO)