After four days of deliberating, the jury in Bill Cosby's rape trial has said that they are deadlocked. The judge, however, told them to keep deliberating and to come to a final unanimous decision. If they do, they could find him guilty of all charges or a few; they could declare a mistrial; or, they could find him innocent. The fact that they even have to deliberate this long is an example of the Rape Culture, racism, and injustice that fuels this country.
The current case against Bill Cosby
Although the current case against Cosby is what is known as a "he said, she said" as there is no forensic or DNA evidence, it still fits the criteria for rape.
Purna Rodman Care, who accused Cosby of sexual assault, was given Benadryl capsules by Cosby to "help her relax." This is equal to giving someone alcohol to incapacitate them. Benadryl can cause drowsiness and the label advises users not to drive if that's the case. Cosby raped this woman. He gave her Benadryl with the hope of knocking her out, giving him access to her body. He made sure that she was unable to control her fine motor skills and that she was drugged enough to keep her calm. The jury members should know this. This should be common sense. We must teach our sons and daughters, our friends and coworkers, that "sex" without clear and concise consent is rape.
Racism is alive
Jurors have been selected and rejected for racial reasons.
The majority of the jurors are not people of color. In fact, a woman was removed from the jury simply for her race; there are only 5 out of 12 women on the jury as well. A case of this importance should have a jury that was carefully and deliberately selected with race and sex/gender included. This jury should've been composed of an equal number of men and women, and an equal number of white people and people of color.
Although 60+ women have accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault, he deserves to be equally represented in the court of law. Juries are supposed to be made up of like-minded peers...that is, people like Cosby and Care.
Injustice to women
By telling the judge and the world that they cannot reach a decision in the case of a repeat offender, the jury serves an injustice to women all over the world.
This tells women that if 60+ of them accuse a man of rape, without physical evidence, their claims are false. Without signs of a struggle, without a rape kit, without DNA, the jurors tell those women that what they experienced is not enough to be considered a crime. What about women who were threatened and did not come forward for years? What about the survivors who did not think that their experience counted because they couldn't remember? What about the victims that never got to come forward? We must give women the peace that they deserve, and that starts with believing them.
