Can YouTube vindicate a rape survivor?
Crystal says that a 23-year-old man raped her, and she's saying it on YouTube. Why not go to a shelter or a counseling center like girls are supposed to? Crystal isn't just doing teen-bedroom confessional; she's asking YouTube viewers to call the Florida state attorney's office to request that her case be prosecuted. But does talking about rape on YouTube do anything that the courts can't? The full video, after the jump:
YouTube wasn't Crystal's only online option. She could have gone to an anonymous chatroom for survivors created by McAfee Security and RAINN, a sexual-assault education organization. But when less than 5 percent of rape cases ever make it to prosecution in Crystal's home state, including her own, a girl might want a broader audience for her outrage. Revealing her face, her location, her IP address as a rape survivor may seem scary. But in this case, it made more sense than trusting offline law.