We must all join together regardless of race, gender identity, class and sexuality. Only then can the real revolution begin.
Students at Ohio University are tired and angry of the injustice we see around us. The day after F--kRapeCulture released the petition to ban the ACACIA fraternity chapter on campus, more than 100 students occupied Baker University Center to protest the decision to not indict Darren Wilson for the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. What we must remember going forward is that the injustices we see in this world are linked and cannot be separated.
The system that tells black men to pull up their pants to avoid being shot is the same system that tells women to pull down their skirts to avoid being raped. It’s the same society that tells trans and non-binary people to make sure they look either male or female — otherwise they will be beaten. It is a system that relies on the status quo and thus, is incredibly flawed.
The uprising in Ferguson has been called a riot, so white people have been using it as an excuse to point fingers and say “look at how savage black people are.” Some white people riot and set fires to cars over lost games of football and basketball, but that isn’t twisted into a storyline that makes whites look less than human.
The verdict to not indict Darren Wilson is a representation of what happens to black people nationally. John Crawford III was murdered in a Wal-Mart on Aug. 5 for carrying around a pellet gun he had picked up off the shelves. Eric Garner died of a heart attack on July 17 when police put him into a chokehold. Oftentimes, the media portray black people as black men, ignoring the fact that women of color are also systematically targeted and then forgotten. Tarika Wilson was shot dead in Lima, Ohio, when police raided her house to arrest her partner.
Harvey Milk was the first openly gay politician in California. In 1978, he and the then-mayor of San Francisco were assassinated by a straight, white male who received only five years in prison for the double murder. In 2012, The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs found there were 25 anti-LGBTQ homicides in the United States and most of them were against people of color. Intersectional feminism teaches that injustice of race is linked to injustice of gender, sexuality, ableism and classism.
According to an article from the National Journal, a white male with a criminal record is more likely to get hired than a male of color with a clean record. A white male can shoot an unarmed black teen in Florida and get away with it. But when Marissa Alexander, a woman of color, fires a warning shot at her abusive husband after he assaulted her, she goes to prison.
Discussion of injustices cannot be separated from one another. We can choose to focus on certain aspects, but in the end we must not forget that this society was built to benefit a certain group of people. We must all join together regardless of race, gender identity, class and sexuality. Only then can the real revolution begin.
Jessica Ensley is a senior studying journalism and an active member of F-kRapeCulture at Ohio University. Email her at je726810@ohio.edu.
Editor’s Note: Last week’s “Lean In Further” column had two errors. The column, which was about the petition to ban the ACACIA fraternity on campus and created by members of F--kRapeCulture, failed to mention the fact that Jessica Ensley is an active member of F--kRapeCulture. The column also stated that the fraternity is “notorious for drugging and raping women,” however there have been no charges against members of ACACIA and police have yet to prove any of the rumors. The Post regrets the errors.
