Considering Bill Cosby: In Search of Justice (HuffPo)
My experience as a licensed psychologist, former rape crisis counselor, and sexual assault survivor shaped the way I viewed the recent news coverage of Bill Cosby's case. Not only have I worked with many survivors who never had a day in court or who went to court and did not receive justice, I am also a survivor who never had my day in court.
Considering the statistics and the mental health consequences facing survivors as well as the social stigma that fuels victim blaming, it is not surprising that many survivors do not come forward. Like many survivors, I was so weighed down in shock, fear, shame, and the wish for the horrible violation to go away that seeking justice in the immediate aftermath was not even a consideration. In my book, "Surviving Sexual Violence: A Guide to Recovery and Empowerment," I describe the psychological, social, and cultural barriers that often keep survivors silent.
While the dictionary definition of justice is a just, righteous, or fair act, there are additional nuances to consider psychologically when we speak of justice. Psychiatrist Judith Herman notes in her 2005 article titled "Justice from the Victims' Perspective" that less than 5% of rape victims see the conviction of the person who raped them. She conducted an exploratory study into the conceptualization of justice from the perspective of the victimized and notes that the justice system is resistant to punish people for sexual assault. Sexual assault is among the crimes that are least likely to be reported, prosecuted, or to result in a conviction.
As Herman describes, the current justice system is designed in ways that oppose the needs of victims. Survivors need a sense of safety, social support, the ability to tell their story in their way (not by answering a string of yes-and-no questions that rob their story of coherence and meaning), and the need to control exposure to certain details that trigger greater psychological distress.
Victims who do come forward often experience threats from the perpetrator, little protection from the law, and victim-blaming from lawyers, the media, and the general public. Herman's study based on interviews with victims found that most experienced the justice system procedures as disrespectful, marginalizing, and humiliating of victims. They perceived the system as one that is easily manipulated by charismatic and/or high status offenders.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/thema-bryantdavis/considering-bill-cosby-justice_b_8901522.html
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