Detroit Student Denounces the System that Produces Sexual Violence “From the Frat House to the White House”

As part of the national day of action in solidarity with Jane Doe at Cornell University, students at the University of Detroit Mercy organized and marched around campus and held an open mic rally afterwards. In her speech, Amelia Abar connected the fight against sexual violence to the struggle against all forms of exploitation and oppression, and spoke for the need for an anti-capitalist perspective to fight against patriarchy.

Hi everyone! Thank you so much for being here, and being a part of our National Day of Action to #StopSexualViolence. My name is Amelia Abar, and I am a sophomore at the University of Detroit Mercy.

Before I begin, can we first take a moment of silence to remember why we are here? For Jane Doe at Cornell. For Kendall Francis at LSU. For every single survivor who has endured sexual violence in this crowd, on our campus, and in our communities. 

I see you. I am you. And you are not alone.

Now, can everyone repeat after me and help me give survivors a message: WE LOVE YOU. WE BELIEVE YOU. WE WILL FIGHT FOR YOU.

As we gather together on campus, hundreds of other demonstrations across the country are joining us. We are here because we believe our schools should be a place of learning. Our communities should be a space of care. We should always feel safe and supported. And we should always be in spaces where reports of sexual assault are taken seriously.

We stand here today because we are enraged and heartbroken over the violence that Jane Doe and Kendall Francis had to endure, not just from their abusers, but from the systems and institutions that chose not to protect them. A capitalist system built on sexism and exploitation, on institutions of society, like the colleges and university administrations, that refuse to support survivors while condemning those that speak out against systemic injustice.

Their cases are not just gross injustices, but symptoms of a larger system that is working exactly as it was designed to. Where abusers receive protection, slaps on the wrist, temporary suspensions, and essays to “reflect on their behavior”.

And what of the survivors who have bravely come forward? They are told to stay on campus alongside their abusers. They are made to reshare the traumatic details of their assaults only to be gaslit, have their character questioned, and denied the resources and support to care for themselves properly or seek any form of justice.

We refuse to allow sexual and gender-based violence to be normalized, excused, and supported by all systems and institutions of oppression and exploitation. From the Frat House to the White House, sexual violence is never acceptable. From ICE to Palestine, we demand an end to sexual violence, and…

WE FIGHT FOR A WORLD FREE FROM ALL FORMS OF OPPRESSION

To the men in the crowd, we need you to do more. Never be the person who saw something and chose to do nothing. Betray the patriarchy that oppresses all of us and keeps rape culture alive. Call out your friends and protect survivors. Join rallies like these and mobilize with your community whenever these situations occur. Take these spaces to discuss next steps for our collective struggle. We cannot do this without you. We must break these cycles of harm together:

The same system that refuses to protect survivors is the same system that refuses to investigate the murder of Nolan Wells and fight for his justice.

The same system that refuses to protect survivors is the same system that detains immigrants and people of color in ICE concentration camps, subjecting individuals to inhumane conditions, deprived of menstrual products, sexually assaulted, and abused by agents of the system.

The same system that refuses to protect survivors is the same system that funds the ongoing genocide in Palestine committed by the Israeli government, and all of the systems, corporations, institutions, and other nations that fund said genocide, especially the United States of America.

The same system that refuses to protect survivors, is the same system that allows our leaders in government, who have sexually abused and assaulted numerous people, who have their names in the Epstein files, and fail those survivors time and time again by blocking any pathway to justice. 

We are not only here to show that we are up against gender based violence. We are here to show that we are up against patriarchy, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, capitalism, imperialism, racism, and all other forms of oppression and exploitation.

All we have is each other: our communities who are in the struggle with us. We are here to stand with each other, but more importantly, to stand against the systems and institutions that continue to oppress us.

JUSTICE FOR ALL SURVIVORS OF GENDER BASED VIOLENCE

And most importantly, for liberation for all oppressed peoples, the youth, and the working class.

Thank you so much for joining us today. You are never alone. 

Thank you for being here and demanding accountability and justice for survivors. If you are feeling sad, angry, or lost, please look to your right and left. Your community is here, struggling with you. You are never alone.