Sexual Assault Survivor Referenced By George Will: I Don't Have 'Privileges'
CAITLIN MACNEAL – JULY 1, 2014, 11:08 AM EDT
The sexual assault survivor whose story George Will referenced in his controversial column about rape responded to his characterization of rape, criticizing him for making sexual assault "seem very small."
In his column, Will said that the focus on sexual assault by colleges makes rape a "coveted status that confers privileges." He used an anecdote from Lisa Sendrow, who described her sexual assault in an interview with Philadelphia Magazine, to discuss the "ambiguities of the hookup culture, this cocktail of hormones, alcohol and the faux sophistication of today’s prolonged adolescence of especially privileged young adults."
"I absolutely have not received any privileges from sexual assault. [Will] has clearly never experienced the fear of sexual assault," Sendrow said in an interview with Media Matters published Tuesday. "He clearly has no idea how hard it is to sleep, to walk around, thinking at any moment this person that you live down the hall from could come out."
"No one gives a shit about you," she added. "What benefit could we possibly get? Sometimes I feel like I can't have a real relationship because someone might touch me in the wrong way. How is that okay?"
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