A few local feminists, including Lori Adelman, Erica Sackin, Julie Klausner, the women of Permanent Wave and myself are organizing a rally tomorrow, Friday May 27th, to protest the acquittal of two police officers and to demand that the NYPD institute regular and ongoing trainings on sexual assault and harassment for all the members of its force, and institute a zero-tolerance policy for assault and sexual harassment on the job.
So come rally with us! The details:
When: Friday May 27, 5-7pm
Where: In front of the Manhattan Criminal Court building at 100 Centre Street.
How: Public Transportation Directions:
…Take the No. 4 or 5 train to the Brooklyn Bridge Station; the C, N, R, 6 train to Canal Street; the 1 train to Franklin Street.
Take the 1, 6 or 15 bus line.
Why: On Thursday May 26, New York police officers Kenneth Moreno and Franklin Mata were found not guilty of charges that Moreno raped a woman in her apartment while Mata kept guard, despite the fact that the amount of evidence against the officers in this case was overwhelming. Instead, the jury convicted both officers of official misconduct for entering the woman’s apartment, but found them not guilty of all other charges, including burglary and falsifying business records. This despite the fact that one of the officers had been recorded on tape admitting to using a condom when having sex with the woman who made the accusation. The cornerstone of the defense required that the woman was too drunk to have a credible account of the incident, but sober enough to consent to sex.
Join us in protest. Because raping a drunk women while on patrol is more than “official misconduct”. Because calling 911 should not be an invitation to be raped. Because NO behavior, including being drunk, is an invitation to be raped. Because rapists do not deserve the protection of our tax-funded police department and city officials. Because we recognize this incident as part of the NYPD’s long, horrific history of violence – sexual and otherwise – often and disproportionately against people of color. Because the people of NYC will not accept victim-blaming, cronyism, and a culture of silence that allows rapists to roam free, without consequence.