How I survived rape in New York and changed state law
'17.01.2018'
Source: womenyoushouldknow.net
New York State recently passed one very important law, one of a kind in the United States: it allows rapists to be held accountable, regardless of the statute of limitations of their crime. One of the most ardent supporters of this law was Amy Pauline, who for the first time in her life spoke about the violence she experienced in her speech in support of the law.
“I have been a member of the New York Assembly for 17 years, since 2000, and all these years I have defended the interests and rights of my voters, I was their voice, their defender. But, as it turns out, it is often much easier to protect someone than to protect yourself, ”says Amy.
Young man you trust
I started to get interested in politics early. My friend's father was a member of the Democratic Party, and she and I have been attending the Democratic Club in Brooklyn since the age of 14. After the meetings, we went with other participants for dinner or coffee. All of them were already in their twenties and we really enjoyed being in the “adult company” where they took us seriously.
One evening my usual friends at the club were not, and one member of the club, whom I saw there regularly, offered to give me a ride home.
I knew this guy. He looked absolutely normal, I did not notice anything threatening in him. I trusted him.
But he parked the car in a dark alley. Maybe it was a schoolyard. Like most victims of violence, I don’t remember the details. I remember only pitch darkness around. No one was there, no one could see or hear what he did to me. I have never told anything about this incident to anyone. I tried to understand what happened, who was to blame and what to do now.
Help others
Unfortunately, my story is not unique. The number of rape victims is in the thousands per year, and only 15% go to the police. Paralyzed by fear, they are unable to protect themselves. They feel helpless, blame and ashamed of themselves, although in fact only one person is to blame - the rapist. I, like most of these people, did not turn to the police.
Experts say recovery from the trauma of sexual abuse takes time. I do not know how much time it took me.
What happened to me made me swear to myself that this evening will not ruin my life, this person will not break me. And for several decades I tried to become stronger and stronger not because of, but in spite of. I wasn’t able to protect myself in 14 years, but now I’ve given up all my strength to help other women who survived the violence.
Change the world
In 2000, I was elected to the New York State Assembly. When I was re-elected for the third time, I was approached by an initiative group that proposed a bill to toughen the penalty for rape. And by that time, I still never let out a single living soul about my traumatic experience. Even a husband with whom I had three grown children.
And so, I thought that the bill was a chance to change the lives of New York women, who never received justice. I was preparing to present this bill at a meeting of the Assembly: speech, statistics, diagrams. But when I started speaking before the other deputies, I was completely unexpected for everyone, and especially for myself, began to talk about that ill-fated evening, about that 14-year-old girl who was raped by an adult guy whom she trusted.
My colleagues sat as if thunderstruck, but it was my story that convinced them that rape can “happen” to anyone, at any age, in any place.
As a result, the bill was approved, now the state of New York is the only one in the United States that has a law that makes it possible to prosecute a rapist, despite the statute of limitations.
This law is important not only for all women. It is also important for me: after all, silence did not give me the opportunity to heal my injury. I'm glad that the bad thing that happened to me was for the good of other people. 40 years later, I found my voice again.
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