Our walk against sexual assault

THERE HAS been a lot of debate about SlutWalk and the organizing behind this new movement that calls out slut-shaming and victim-blaming. In Washington, D.C., some activists were hesitant to get involved with SlutWalk because there was a desire from the organizers to organize within a nonprofit context, and there were also early fundraisers (which have now stopped after much vocal criticism) at gentlemen's clubs.

Despite these problems, this year has brought a wave of anti-woman bigotry and we have had enough! A group of us in the International Socialist Organization drafted these points that we see as central to what we are all organizing for with D.C. SlutWalk:

1. All victims of sexual assault deserve dignified treatment and access to medical care, regardless of race, socioeconomic status, gender expression, sexual orientation, physical ability, mental illness, immigration status, incarceration status, physical appearance or involvement in sex work. We demand that all D.C.-area hospitals provide access to rape kits and train staff to administer rape kits to all victims of assault.

2. All people have a right to control their own bodies and personal space. To have autonomy of our own bodies and sexual liberation, D.C. residents must have access to affordable reproductive health care services, including abortions. Reproductive health care should be prioritized in the budget, and we therefore oppose any and all budget cuts that restrict these services, such as the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act that bans the District from using its own money to fund abortions for low-income women.

3. We oppose sexual assault in all workplaces.

4. We oppose all efforts of public figures (including politicians, law enforcement and military officers) to belittle and joke about incidents of rape and sexual assault in order to generate and maintain a culture in which sexism is accepted, rather than taken seriously.

5. We call for an end to the deportation of undocumented people who report sexual assault, rape and domestic violence. All people must have the ability to report sexual violence and rape and to receive a medical care without fear of deportation.

6. The police must be held accountable to the communities they serve to the fullest extent. We call for the immediate removal and arrest of any police officer that misuses their power and authority position to abuse and assault people. We demand that the victims of police assault receive justice.
Heather Kangas, Washington, D.C.