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Redefine Rape: Support the Rape is Rape bill

• Posted to Say NO MORE to child abuse by Andrew Willis
• Feb 10

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To: Governor Cuomo, Speaker Silver, and Majority Leaders Skelos & Klein

Redefine Rape: Pass Assemblymember Simotas’ Rape is Rape bill this year

We are adamant in expressing our support for Assemblymember Aravella Simotas’s Rape-is-Rape legislation, Assembly Bill 3339 and Senate Bill S06877. As it stands, the legal definition of rape is insufficient to protect...

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Redefine Rape: Pass Assemblymember Simotas’ Rape is Rape bill this year

We are adamant in expressing our support for Assemblymember Aravella Simotas’s Rape-is-Rape legislation, Assembly Bill 3339 and Senate Bill S06877. As it stands, the legal definition of rape is insufficient to protect victims of non-vaginal rape from effectively obtaining justice. We urge you to take expedited action to facilitate the passage of the Rape-is-Rape bill as soon as possible, which would change the definition of rape to include all forcible sexual acts.

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25,000

25,703 people signed a petition

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"What does a woman have to do to prove she was raped?"

Hello I'm Lydia Cuomo,

I had been raped and now it felt like I was being traumatized all over again This time it was in a courtroom, my family and friends were there, my rapist and his attorney, and the public.

He had already confessed. My family were in front row seats for the detailed account of how their little girl, a school teacher, walking on her way to work, dragged by a New York City police officer into an alley at gunpoint, and forced into oral, anal and vaginal sex. 

The rape was brutal, reliving it in public and in front of my family and rapist...indescribable.  

Now, at the end of that long trial and sitting feet from my rapist and in front of my family, I found out that my jury was going to hang. Guilty verdict on two counts of criminal sexual acts, for the oral and anal assaults, but they hung, and I would have a mistrial on the rape charges.

Mistrial? How can that be? He confessed!

It's then explained, rather matter of factly, that New York state law requires vagnial penetration in order to call it rape, and since vaginal penetration could not be proven, I was told my rape was only a sexual assault.

To call what happened 'sexual assault' is a crime itself. Right is right, he raped me at the end of the day, and he's not being called a rapist. He is a rapist, and now New York need to call rape, rape because it doesn't matter whether or not is is oral, anal, or vaginal, they are all a gross and violent violation when you are the one being raped.

Trust me, there's nothing sexual about it — it was detestable, a disgusting violation. 
I was raped. Raped, like thousands of others are every year in New York, many men too, only some, like me, don't get to call it rape, and that's just wrong.

Someone please tell me what a woman has to do to prove she was raped?

New York, with your help, I'm convinced we can change these arcane laws that do more to protect rapists than their victims.   

If you believe that rape should be called rape, please share the petition so we can get this law passed and protect other women and men from brutal assaults like this.

Thank you,

Lydia

PS.  Thank you for sharing this with your friends so they have the opportunity to support this too.  All of us working together can #stopabuse!

With thanks to KENNETH LOVETT  and the NEW YORK DAILY NEWS for their reporting.  You can read more of my story here: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/survivor-expand-ny-rape-statutes-article-1.1260437#ixzz2KbzqbP7d

Location: New York, NY

1. Update #7

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on May 16

   Thank you to everybody who signed our petition in the last few days.  We still need to get the bill passed through the senate where your 25,000 signatures on this petition are already making a difference.  

   Some people are still pushing a point of view that there should be different types of rape though.  This "idea that we should parsing and qualifying and slicing what types of rape we are talking about doesn't make sense to the American people" and it doesn't make sense to us either!  Just...

   …

   Thank you to everybody who signed our petition in the last few days.  We still need to get the bill passed through the senate where your 25,000 signatures on this petition are already making a difference.  

   Some people are still pushing a point of view that there should be different types of rape though.  This "idea that we should parsing and qualifying and slicing what types of rape we are talking about doesn't make sense to the American people" and it doesn't make sense to us either!  Just like it didn't make sense when various politicians were talking about "legitimate rape" during the election.

   Thanks for being part of the team to get us past 25,000 signatures.  Let's keep the pressure on for New York to redefine rape to include all forcible sexual acts.  

   Please hit the green button, thank you.
   

   

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2. Update #6

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on May 13

   We need just 75 signatures to drive this petition over 25,000 signatures? Can you help by hitting that big green button and inviting your friends?New York's leadership need to hear from everybody right now that it's time to call a rape what it is, a rape.  Some senators feel that it makes a difference how you get raped, as if being raped in the anus or mouth somehow makes it different to being raped in the vagina.

   We need to send rapists a clear message, rape is rape and the law should... …

   We need just 75 signatures to drive this petition over 25,000 signatures? Can you help by hitting that big green button and inviting your friends?New York's leadership need to hear from everybody right now that it's time to call a rape what it is, a rape.  Some senators feel that it makes a difference how you get raped, as if being raped in the anus or mouth somehow makes it different to being raped in the vagina.

   We need to send rapists a clear message, rape is rape and the law should treat it that way. Thanks for signing the petition, thanks for everything you have done to get others involved. We're nearly there.  Let's work together one more time and make it clear to New York's State Senate - Rape is Rape - Pass the Rape is Rape Bill now
   
   Thanks for everything you do to stop abuse!
   Andrew & Kenny
   PS.  New York's legislative session ends soon, let's send a strong signal now!
   Please Follow us on Facebook and Follow us on Twitter

3. Update #5

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on Mar 18

   I don't know about you but here in Harlem we were relieved at the result of the Steubenville trial over the weekend, we're also happy that the Ohio Attorney General is taking this further.  Through all the coverage it seems to have been forgotten that a young vulnerable girl was taken advantage of in the most awful way.  A young girl who found the courage to stand up to her rapists despite the hatred and death threats.

   Let's show her, let's show Lydia Cuomo and every victim of rape that we...

   …

   I don't know about you but here in Harlem we were relieved at the result of the Steubenville trial over the weekend, we're also happy that the Ohio Attorney General is taking this further.  Through all the coverage it seems to have been forgotten that a young vulnerable girl was taken advantage of in the most awful way.  A young girl who found the courage to stand up to her rapists despite the hatred and death threats.

   Let's show her, let's show Lydia Cuomo and every victim of rape that we mean what we say when we say:  Redefine Rape in New York State!
   

   

   If ,like us, you feel that rape is rape then let's make sure we change the culture that supports it.  Over 20,000 of us have signed this petition now.  If we all just get one person to sign it we'll have an impressive 40,000 signatures.  The Governor is already engaged, let's make sure we send a clear message #RedefineRape in New York State and  #StopAbuse.

   Thanks for everything you do!

   Andrew and Kenny

   PS.  Thanks to the Ms. Foundation for the visual

4. Update #4

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on Mar 7

   Thanks for signing this petition.  Almost 2,000 people are signing every day because it's time to redefine rape and bring our laws up to date.  Getting this law passed in New York is important because it'll help us do the same thing in other states too.
   

   

   
   

   I had the privilege of meeting Gene Cuomo, Lydia's father, at Assemblywoman Simotas' press conference in Albany.  He wrote asking me to thank you all for supporting his daughter in her campaign to redefine rape.
   
   A letter from Lydia's father:

   I...

   …

   Thanks for signing this petition.  Almost 2,000 people are signing every day because it's time to redefine rape and bring our laws up to date.  Getting this law passed in New York is important because it'll help us do the same thing in other states too.
   

   

   
   

   I had the privilege of meeting Gene Cuomo, Lydia's father, at Assemblywoman Simotas' press conference in Albany.  He wrote asking me to thank you all for supporting his daughter in her campaign to redefine rape.
   
   A letter from Lydia's father:

   I will never forget that day, August 19, 2011. That was the day that I got a call saying my daughter Lydia had been attacked and raped. The drive to New York City from New Hampshire flew by as I rushed to be with Lydia. My anger and shock at learning that an off-duty police officer had savagely raped my daughter took a back seat to supporting Lydia and making sure she was taken care of. Her words to me later that night were " I'm going to get through this". I am so proud of her strength, courage and bravery, especially when she testified at the trial and later when her attacker was found guilty of sexual assault but not for rape.  Lydia's decision to pursue another trial to find him guilty of rape resulted in him pleading guilty to two counts of rape.

   I have always supported Lydia's choices and decisions and I am especially proud of how she has decided to take this horrible event and use it to help enact positive change in our laws and in telling her story, decrease the stigma about talking about rape and in doing so help rape survivors to heal.

   By signing this petition, you can show your support of Lydia's effort  to redefine rape in the State of New York. Please invite ten or more of your friends to sign this petition because if we all do that, then surely we can get the Bill passed.  Working together we can redefine rape and stop abuse in New York State.

   As Lydia says "It just wasn't a sexual assault, there was nothing sexual about it.  It was a brutal armed assault by an off duty policeman holding his police issued pistol to my head.  It was what we all call rape, he has confessed to raping me, it's time for New York State to call it rape too."

   Gene Cuomo

   
   

   
   

5. Update #3

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on Feb 20

   An update from Aravella Simotas NY State Assemblymember – District 36
   

   Dear friends,

   
I want to express my sincere gratitude for the outpouring of support we have received over the past week. It has been my privilege to work with such a strong and empowered young woman as Lydia Cuomo to ensure that our rape laws are responsive to survivors. Hearing Lydia's story for the first time truly moved me; her courage in speaking out was a call to action on introducing this bill.  
   
   Since our press...

   …

   An update from Aravella Simotas NY State Assemblymember – District 36
   

   Dear friends,

   
I want to express my sincere gratitude for the outpouring of support we have received over the past week. It has been my privilege to work with such a strong and empowered young woman as Lydia Cuomo to ensure that our rape laws are responsive to survivors. Hearing Lydia's story for the first time truly moved me; her courage in speaking out was a call to action on introducing this bill.  
   
   Since our press conference in Albany last Tuesday, I have some important updates to share. I am amending my bill to include a contact standard for sexual intercourse, while still maintaining the critical change of calling all rape by its name. In order to be truly effective, the legislation must include both of these elements.
   
   As Lydia shared last week, semantics really do matter. Survivors should not be forced into a choice between healing and lowered standards of conviction. They deserve both. That is why I am amending my bill to include the standardized elements of forcible sexual conduct.
   
   I am also pleased to share that Governor Andrew Cuomo is supportive of our efforts to find a consensus and will be working with us to help pass this important legislation. The Governor's continued support will be invaluable as we fight for the passage of the Rape is Rape bill.
   
   I urge all of you to not only sign the petition, but to actively share it with friends and family members in order for us to gain as much momentum as possible moving forward. Please write your elected officials as well — standing together with Lydia and all survivors of rape, we can truly make meaningful change with your support.
   
   Warmly,
   

   Aravella Simotas

   
   NY State Assemblymember – District 36 

   

   
   

6. Update #2

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on Feb 14

   

   
   
   Hello I'm Lydia Cuomo,
   
   I had been raped and now it felt like I was being traumatized all over again This time it was in a courtroom, my family and friends were there, my rapist and his attorney, and the public.
   
   He had already confessed. My family were in front row seats for the detailed account of how their little girl, a school teacher, walking on her way to work, dragged by a New York City police officer into an alley at gunpoint, and forced into oral, anal and vaginal sex.
   
   The... …

   

   
   
   Hello I'm Lydia Cuomo,
   
   I had been raped and now it felt like I was being traumatized all over again This time it was in a courtroom, my family and friends were there, my rapist and his attorney, and the public.
   
   He had already confessed. My family were in front row seats for the detailed account of how their little girl, a school teacher, walking on her way to work, dragged by a New York City police officer into an alley at gunpoint, and forced into oral, anal and vaginal sex.
   
   The rape was brutal, reliving it in public and in front of my family and rapist...indescribable.
   
   Now, at the end of that long trial and sitting feet from my rapist and in front of my family, I found out that my jury was going to hang. Guilty verdict on two counts of criminal sexual acts, for the oral and anal assaults, but they hung, and I would have a mistrial on the rape charges.
   
   Mistrial? How can that be? He confessed!
   
   It's then explained, rather matter of factly, that New York state law requires vagnial penetration in order to call it rape, and since vaginal penetration could not be proven, I was told my rape was only a sexual assault.
   
   To call what happened 'sexual assault' is a crime itself. Right is right, he raped me at the end of the day, and he's not being called a rapist. He is a rapist, and now New York need to call rape, rape because it doesn't matter whether or not is is oral, anal, or vaginal, they are all a gross and violent violation when you are the one being raped.
   
   Trust me, there's nothing sexual about it — it was detestable, a disgusting violation.
   I was raped. Raped, like thousands of others are every year in New York, many men too, only some, like me, don't get to call it rape, and that's just wrong.
   
   Someone please tell me what a woman has to do to prove she was raped?
   
   New York, with your help, I'm convinced we can change these arcane laws that do more to protect rapists than their victims.   
   
   If you believe that rape should be called rape, please share the petition so we can get this law passed and protect other women and men from brutal assaults like this.Thank you,

   
   

   Lydia

   PS.  Thank you for sharing this with your friends so they have the opportunity to support this too.  All of us working together can #stopabuse!
   

7. Update #1

   Posted by Andrew Willis (Campaign Leader) on Feb 11

   You are incredible, thank you!

   What an incredible response from you all, thank you so much we are already over 600 signatures, and in only about 6 hours!  Of course this bill just makes common sense doesn't it?

   Lydia Cuomo's story is horrific enough, raped at gunpoint by a policeman in an alleyway when all you were doing was going home - but then to be told you weren't raped?
   

   We need New York to pass the Rape is Rape bill and I made a rash promise that I'd ask our fabulous supporters, that's...

   …

   You are incredible, thank you!

   What an incredible response from you all, thank you so much we are already over 600 signatures, and in only about 6 hours!  Of course this bill just makes common sense doesn't it?

   Lydia Cuomo's story is horrific enough, raped at gunpoint by a policeman in an alleyway when all you were doing was going home - but then to be told you weren't raped?
   

   We need New York to pass the Rape is Rape bill and I made a rash promise that I'd ask our fabulous supporters, that's you, to each invite a friend to sign before noon tomorrow - because at 1230pm in Albany tomorrow we're holding a press conference and Lydia will be there with us.

   Let's let Lydia know we have her back, let's show how all of us working together can #stopabuse - starting with calling a rape a rape.  

   Thanks for taking a stand on this, hit the green button and we'll do the rest!

   Thanks,

   Andrew & Kenny

   PS.  You'll find this image on our Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/abusestoppers if you can share it please.