Atlanta woman beaten "beyond recongition" --

[Eloriel]

AFTER she was sexually assaulted.

She was sexually assaulted when she went back into her house to get the man who later assaulted her the drink of water he'd asked for.

The policeman interviewed on TV said she was "beaten beyond recognition" with a tone of gravity in his voice (as opposed to the more routine and expected matter-of-fact tone of a law enforcement officer). He said she was beaten again and again and again in the face.

And then he stole her car.

The woman wasn't unable to give much of a description to police and is now "heavily sedated," and so unable to talk with them further.



THIS is why I take such exception to people here at DU calling women they don't like, including rightwing women, things like "bitch," "whore," and so forth.

What do you think that man was calling her, either aloud or in his head, as he did all those things to her?

You don't do violence to people you respect. You don't respect people you call ugly, vile names, and you can do vile, ugly things to people you don't respect -- or others can, while you stand by and do nothing. You don't respect a whole class of people -- women -- when you call them derogatory names which target their gender and/or sexuality.

When you use those names for women you don't like, you help normalize the use of that language, and help extend that disrespect toward a whole class of humans simply because they are members of that class. You also make it difficult to impossible for anyone on the Left to object to sexist treatment of women by the Right.

I'll bet you don't think it's okay to call Clarence Thomas a "nigger," or Antonin Scalia a "wop."

Then why would it be remotely acceptable to call Ann Coulter or Laura Bush or any other rightwing woman "bitch" or "whore" etc.?

Hint: It isn't.

[Kerrytravelers]

1. Well written post. Thought provoking and personally, I agree.

[Terry Allan Hall]

2. In all honesty

In all honesty, you almost expect this kind of thing in a state like Georgia, you'd be hard pressed to find a redder state.

[Kerrytravelers]

5. Crimes like this happen in all 50 states, in all political arenas.

I really don't think this is exclusive to "red states," which is really not a reality since the whole geographic map of the electorate is more shades of purple versus just red and blue.

[billbuckhead]

3. America's prison culture has become mainstream.

America has so many people in the prison system that prison "culture" has sadly bled into the mainstream. How many times have you heard people calling for rape of those put in prison by "Bubba"? The "bitch" term has become mainstream as well. This is a sad developement.

[jpgray]

4. I'll continue to think those who use those terms aren't brutal rapists

But you can think whatever you like. "Bitch" and "whore" just aren't on the same level as "nigger" or "wop," just as "dick" or "bastard" aren't. Four of those words people will likely hear on primetime television, two of them people won't hear. They aren't at all the same in terms of impact or offensiveness in my view.

[SnowGoose]

6. I'm with ya!

This has always bugged me... especially that "beeyatch" thing people seemed to think was so cute a couple of years back.

Asswipe, dil-rod, fuckhead... all those describe the qualities (or lack thereof) of the individual. Things like bitch seem to relate specifically to the property of being female. I guess that's why those terms bother me, while the others, often considered more shocking, don't really bug me too much.

Thanks for posting this.

[Skittles]

7. I use the word whore in the political sense

media whore and republican whore - that's EXACTLY what they are. Meaning in Websters "to pursue a faithless, unworthy or idolatrous desire." And I use it a lot more for men than I do for women.

[Coexist]

excellent post

nominated

[G2099]

8. 2 legged Beast come in all colors, races, sexes, peoples . . .

Once a human has been reduced to the level of a beast they have no respect for anything nor anybody except "maybe" the fear of death.

The question is: what is it in the American culture and society,(never mind other cultures and societies; none is perfect)that produces individuals that commit these terrible crimes against children, women other men and serial killers? What is lacking in the American culture and society?

[im10ashus]

9. What a tragedy.

That poor woman. But honestly, I don't think we can even BEGIN to guess what was going through someones mind when they do something like this. Equating this violent act with calling someone a "bitch" is not even comparable, IMHO.

Edited to add: Ann Coulter is just a slimy piece of shit. "Bitch" would be dignifying her.

[atreides1]

10. Okay

I don't have any respect for Coulter, Limbaugh, Horowitz, Thomas, Scalia, Laura Bush, and the others of that ilk, but I would not
advocate the use of violence against them.

But if you ask would I raise a hand to help any of them, to tell you the truth I would actually have to think about it first, but in the end I would lend them the assistance that they would deny to you and me.

And by the way Thomas is more of an Uncle Tom, and Scalia would have been the perfect judge for Hitler's court rooms, Coulter could give
Lucretia Borgia a run for her money, and Laura Bush is the perfect example of a Stepford wife.

I truly am sorry for this woman in Atlanta, but I think it's a far stretch to say that what has been said here at DU is the catalyst for
how all women are treated.

[lavenderdiva]

11. thank you Eloriel for expressing these sentiments

so succinctly and directly. For years, I have been appalled at the verbage that runs rampant throughout our communities, and not even blinked at. I hate that a whole genre of music disrespects women and others all the time, and that it is now an accepted part of our society. Don't get me started... Anyway, thank you for responding to this article and speaking for many of us!

ps. Nominated!

[Moderator]

12. The DU Rules are clear on this:

While specific words are not automatically forbidden, members should avoid using racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise bigoted terminology. This includes gender-specific terms such as "bitch," "cunt," "whore," "slut," or "pussy," and terms with homophobic derivation, such as "cocksucker," which are often inflammatory and inappropriate. One common exception is the use of the phrase "media whore," which is permitted.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/forums/rules_detailed.html

If someone uses these words in an inappropriate context, please click the Alert link so the moderators can deal with it.

I am locking this thread.