The Cry of Tamar is a sad story about Tamar, a woman who is raped by her brother, Amnon. The outrage felt when reading the violence portrayed in the story was carried over when reading Pamela Cooper-White’s book, The Cry of Tamar: Violence Against Women and the Church’s Response (Second Edition). I am not new to the concept of violence and brutality through a sexual nature, however, the way Cooper-White depicted them with such descriptive imagery made me feel like I felt what all the victims must have once experienced.
Cooper-White explains scenarios of violence against women that happened not only in early eras but continue to occur in today’s society. The premise within Copper-White's book that captivated my attention the most was how each
…show more content…
And when the defendant was convicted, the criminal was either released or given light sentences, just like Brock Turner who made headlines in the "Stanford Rape Case." I believe that men, as well as women, are raped and sexually abused and are scared to come forward. However, women hold the higher percentage of victims and rarely see justice. Another factor that is preposterous to me is that according to Cooper-White, in sexual violence cases, women and men are generally sentenced the same. I adamantly believe that men and women should not be sentenced the same based on the crime and all factors should be accounted for. If there are two cases, one where a man rapes a woman and another where a woman rapes a man, each should be prosecuted differently. Was the man who raped the woman stronger and able to force her? What was the extent of the abuse? Was there any hint of it being consensual? Men are often bigger and stronger than the women they rape, making it plausible. If a woman rapes a man, there are different factors to consider. Most women are not bigger or stronger than men and this should be taken into consideration. Was the woman threatening or blackmailing the man? Did she have a weapon? Did she detain him against his will? Not every sexual violence case is the same and the prosecution should be more thorough in looking at