By Abhishek Jha:
There are two things regarding the recent Charleston shooting. The way these shootings are characterised by conservative media, and the terrorist-organisation-style rationalisation that Dylann Roof gave before murdering nine people.
When a male white shooter is only termed a “lone gunman“, a “mentally ill person” etc., the nomenclature denies that there is a systemic problem, that there is a hatred being methodically fed to the person by the establishments and structures around him.
In the critically acclaimed TV series ‘The Wire’, there is an episode where Prez, a supposedly incompetent police officer, shoots a black officer in plain clothes when responding to a distress call. His colleagues loathe him for being “a goof”, but most of them deny a racial angle to the shooting. But Prez himself admits that he would not be able to ascertain if that was in his head. Another colleague questions in private whether the plain clothes officer would have been shot if he had been white.
When structural violence by the police passes off as just law enforcement, when entire wars are waged killing innocent people in the name of “national security”, it is bound to create prejudices that run deep in the psyche of the people. Dylann Roof didn’t think he was doing something bad. He thought he was killing people who are “taking over the country“. Isn’t this the kind of rationalisation that terrorist organisations give for attacks?
Reportedly, before murdering six women (and three men), Roof said, “You rape our women. And you’re taking over our country. And you have to go.” We saw a similar kind of fear being articulated against a woman who was wearing a hijab in a commuter train in Sydney earlier this year. And there is a lesson to be learnt by those of us in India. Wasn’t a similar mythical figure of the Muslim man as rapist invoked by the VHP and the rest of the Sangh parivar before the 2014 elections? Muzaffarnagar Baaqi Hai, a documentary by Nakul Singh Sawhney on the Muzaffarnagar riots, shows Amit Shah justifying the riots as a fight for protecting the “honour” of Hindu women in a public speech. The VHP is also calling for a strike in Gujarat this month after a woman was allegedly abducted recently in Nadiad town of Gujarat and is calling this an act of “love-jihad”.
As philosopher Slavoj Zizek in ‘The Pervert’s Guide To Ideology’ said, “Because, isn’t it that, for example, the most extreme case of ideology, maybe in the history of humanity, the Nazi fascist anti-Semitism worked in the same way? Imagine an ordinary German citizen in the late 20s, early 30s. His situation is, in an abstract way, the same as that of a small child. He’s totally perplexed…What does society want from him? Why is everything going wrong? The way he perceives the situation is that newspapers lie to him. He lost his work because of inflation. He lost all his money in the bank. He sees moral degradation and so on. So what’s the meaning of this all?…You need to generate an ideological narrative which explains who things went wrong in a society, not as a result of the inherent tensions in the development of this society but as the result of a foreign intruder. Things were okay until Jews penetrated our social body. The way to restore the health of our social body is to eliminate the Jews.”
Similar misrepresentation is also at work in our country. On a right wing website, which I found when researching the Muzaffarnagar riots, I found a similar image of the Muslim rapist being conjured through misrepresentation of reports. None of the reports it cites actually could point to which religion the victim of the rape or sexual assault belonged to. But since the offenders could be named and, in all cited reports, they were Muslim, it could help invoke a threat to the Hindu community.
Terrorists are often people who feed too much on these mythical figures, which simplify the confusion surrounding them. The work of a society then should be to eliminate the conditions that allow for this. Because it doesn’t matter whether Dylann Roof is mentally ill or not. His act would qualify as an act of racism and of terrorism because of the practices of American institutions against people of colour – racial profiling, for instance. They really have a well-equipped police department, which helped them apprehend Roof within a day. But policing is not the answer to the problem that has and might yet again make another Dylann Roof.
Jigsaw
YKA is kindly requested to stop censoring my comments. You cannot censor the truth.
Woman sentenced to 3 years Jail for a false rape case. Reason – Property dispute. Accused ended his life.
http://www.patrika.com/news/woman-made-fake-rape-allegation-sentenced-3-years-jail/1080735
Cops raid her home to find her husband, apparently accused of a crime, she CRIES rape by Cops! They plead innocence
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/Woman-accuses-3-cops-who-raided-house-of-rape/articleshow/46148533.cms
This article basically nails the trend. Tougher rape law leading to increase in false cases?
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Tougher-rape-law-leading-to-increase-in-false-cases/articleshow/30807940.cms
Classic case of rape law misuse: False gangrape
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/a-classic-case-of-misuse-of-rape-laws/article4561657.ece
Journalist arrested in false gang rape case
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/noida/Journalists-arrested-in-Ghaziabad-gang-rape-case/articleshow/30751752.cms
Delhi woman misuses rape law, held for extortion
http://news.oneindia.in/feature/2013/delhi-woman-misuses-rape-law-held-for-extortion-1259736.html
Men who face false rape charges – BLOG
http://creative.sulekha.com/men-who-face-false-rape-charges_486653_blog
Girl faces 7 years Rigorous Imprisonment for false rape allegations
http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/chandigarh/court-initiates-criminal-trial-against-gangrape-victim/
Rape filed when husband discovered wife coming out of someone else’s house
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Bombay-High-court-upholds-rape-acquittal/articleshow/23928047.cms
Punishment for falling in LOVE
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-10-06/ahmedabad/42763164_1_16-year-old-girl-two-firs-amraiwadi
Consensual Sex of Four years turned Rape
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-10-09/gurgaon/42861203_1_ashok-kumar-district-and-sessions-judge-high-court
Sexual Adventure turned Rape
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Delhi-man-acquitted-of-rape-charges/articleshow/23927246.cms
Love, Sex and Dhokha…..all given the name of Rape
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-10-02/mumbai/42614448_1_nude-pictures-woman-former-lover
Girl Pregnant, Property Dispute among neighbours, RAPE charge is the Solution
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/man-accused-of-raping-neighbour-acquitted-by-court/1134641/
Father and Daughter both retract from their statements of Rape, refuse to identify accused
http://news.oneindia.in/new-delhi/girl-resiles-from-statement-3-acquitted-in-gang-rape-case-1301948.html
A false rape case by a MAID on an 82 year Old employer, Court issues guidelines to placement agencies
http://www.indiatvnews.com/crime/news/82-year-old-delhi-man-acquitted-of-charge-of-raping-18-year-old–3257.html
Got pregnanant with consent, but she was raped
http://www.firstpost.com/fwire/delhi-man-acquitted-of-raping-deaf-and-dumb-woman-848235.html
Settlement after Rape…or Rape charges for settlement
http://www.rediff.com/news/report/5-jamia-law-students-acquitted-of-rape-charges/20130805.htm
She stayed with cousin with her own ‘sweet will’ but it was a rape for the girls father
http://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/delhi-court-acquits-youth-accused-of-raping-15-year-old-cousin-24190.html
Court acquits man of Rape, wants curb on False cases
http://www.northindiakaleidoscope.com/court-acquits-man-of-rape-charge-wants-curbs-on-false-cases/
Rape on a Road Side???
http://bharatchugh.wordpress.com/tag/rape-case-acquittal/
Unable to pay debt, father coerces daughter to file a rape case. 13 years. Another accused woman dies during pendency of the case.
http://law.geekupd8.com/2013/09/Supreme-Court-Acquits-two-from-the-False-Rape-charges-and-also-warns-lower-courts-to-beware-of-False-Rape-cases.html
Two brothers acquitted. If there would have been three, charges would have been on three, four, five…..
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/340855/two-brothers-acquitted-gang-rape.html
Teacher-Student infatuation, baby born out of it, Rape case filed anonymously …acquitted
http://m.indiatoday.in/story/bombay-high-court-acquits-teacher-of-raping-class-10-student/1/267757.html
Rape filed to force the boy into marriage
http://www.kashmirmonitor.in/news-youth-acquitted-of-raping-robbing-lover-54621.aspx
Acquitted after 11 years of struggle
http://post.jagran.com/supreme-court-acquits-two-persons-in-11yearold-gang-rape-case-1344437990
Dispute over property, turned rape by a young empowered woman against an elderly senior citizen
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-07-28/delhi/40848274_1_false-cases-false-allegation-anita
They raped but dropped her home. Then her father slapped her. Then she slept. Then police found her. OMG.
http://www.amarujala.com/news/crime-bureau/two-men-arrested-in-safdarjang-enclave-gangrape-case/
No words….First elope with boyfriend then charge him with rape.
http://www.amarujala.com/news/crime-bureau/man-raped-minor-girl-in-hydrabad-hotel/
Medical examination declares no rape, claim of sedation also false, still FIR registered
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Madurai-woman-claims-she-was-raped-by-boyfriend-3-others/articleshow/28497480.cms
Rape on pretext of Job, marriage and many other promises
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/noida/Woman-alleges-rape-by-property-dealer/articleshow/28157671.cms?intenttarget=no
Girl agrees rape complaint was false as boyfriend turns husband
http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-woman-admits-her-rape-charge-false-as-boyfriend-turns-husband-1858814
Consensual sex turned rape, Judge says women should sleep before marriage at their own peril
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Premarital-sex-immoral-no-religion-permits-it-Court/articleshow/28424592.cms
Raped continuously for a year by facebook friend
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/surat/Facebook-friend-rapes-woman-promising-marriage-in-Surat/articleshow/28445845.cms
Thrown out of Job, files rape case against 8 people
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/gurgaon/Multinational-companys-director-accused-of-rape/articleshow/28484810.cms?intenttarget=no
Rape cases conviction low because of false complaints : Mumbai Commissioner of Police
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Rape-convictions-low-because-of-false-complaints-Police-commissioner-Satya-Pal-Singh/articleshow/25609124.cms
Don’t always believe rape victims evidence : Supreme Court of India
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/Don-t-always-believe-rape-victims-evidence-SC/Article1-1124474.aspx
CRY RAPE: http://www.openthemagazine.com/article/nation/cry-rape
False cases behind Delhi’s tag of RAPE CAPITAL: Judge, Delhi Court
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-07-27/india/40832087_1_maid-false-cases-additional-sessions-judge-virender
Woman arrested for extortion after filing 11 false rape cases
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/woman-who-filed-11-rape-cases-held-on-charge-of-extorting-an-accused/1141887/1
90% of rape cases in Kishanganj False: SP
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-01-04/patna/36148093_1_bahadurganj-police-kishanganj-sp-complaint-cases
74% percent cases consensual sex turned into rape: Pune Police
http://www.punemirror.in/index.aspx?page=article§id=62&contentid=201004282010042800020376672f460c5
Fake rape victims danger to society: Court
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-07-17/india/32713694_1_district-court-delhi-court-real-victims
Be Vigilant against false cases: HC tells trial court judges
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/newdelhi/be-vigilant-against-false-rape-cases-hc-to-trial-judges/article1-1065107.aspx
Boyfriend, his friends also in false rape trap….O Boyzzz so sorry for you!
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Madurai-woman-claims-she-was-raped-by-boyfriend-3-others/articleshow/28497480.cms
Consensual relationship, pregnancy, then Rape
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nashik/Doctor-arrested-after-nurse-alleges-rape-over-two-years/articleshow/21152808.cms?intenttarget=no
BLOOMING THREAT IN AN AGE OF JUDICIAL CONSENT
http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/tamil_nadu/The-blooming-threat-in-an-age-of-judicial-consent/2013/07/02/article1662956.ece
GO GOA and then GO crying rape
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Hyderabad-girl-accuses-friend-of-raping-her/articleshow/20723131.cms
Rape victims brother is the child’s biological father
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/indore/Rape-victims-real-brother-is-her-childs-biological-father/articleshow/20756347.cms
Women misuse rape law to force lovers to marry them: Delhi HC
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/women-misuse-rape-law-to-force-lovers-to-marry-them-delhi-high-court/393929-3.html
‘Fake’ rape cases reported as Love Turns Sour: Ranchi Police
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-05-18/ranchi/39353985_1_police-station-investigation-police-officer
When live-in turns sour, man becomes ‘rapist’
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-10-09/chennai/34341916_1_live-in-relationships-godman-nithyananda