Embedded Files
The project Tied Down by the Weight of Sexual assault by Michelle Irwin represents the damage of rape and assault. I have found cases from all over the country in all time periods showing the weight even one case can cause on someone. The string represents the amount of cases in different situations and the different colored tape is to show the different cases. Sexual assault takes a toll on people. Even if the assaulter was given the justice they deserve it does not go away. With this project I am showing the affect of assault and the way it traps a person mentally and physically, the weight of each one of these cases causes the model to slowly stop being able to move and allows for no sense of self.
After learning about the amount of people that are not knowledgable on the amount of sexual assault cases that happen in this country, I wanted to put it into a perspective of color and weight.
Key
Ropes:
Yellow & Orange (1 case = 1 cm of rope)
· Out of 1,000 cases 975 will walk free
· 310 Lead to police
· 50 leads to arrest
· 25 leads to incarceration
Purple (10 cases= 1 cm of rope)
· How many people have been jailed in the years 1923, 1950, 1960, and 1981
· Total= 9,183
Red (1 case= 1 cm of rope)
· How many people have been given the death penalty in years 1961-1981
· Total= 142
Blue & Green (1,000 cases= 1cm of rope)
· Rape cases reported between the years 1960-1990
· Total= 1,759,329
Tape:
Guilty VS not Guilty?
Gold= Cases where justice was served
Silver= Cases where justice was not served
Red= usage of weighing down words (Rape, Sexual assault, Asked for it, Promiscuous, etc.…)
Pink- New Jersey Case
Blue- Brooklyn Case
Purple- Florida Case
Yellow- “Witch Hunt” Case
Orange- Judge Case
Green- Orphans Case
Light Green- Hospital Case
Yellow Dotted- Wisconsin Case
Green Dotted- Linda Fairstein vs Rape case
Overview of the cases used in this project:
Wisconsin Case- In this case a 5-year old female has been sexually assaulted and the judge claimed it was caused by the girl being sexually promiscuous. The assaulter was only given 90 days in county jail and 3 years of probation. (1982) Wisconsin Judge's Rape Ruling Angers Residence, By Dan Allegretti. https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1982/01/21/wisconsin-judges-rape-ruling-angers-residents/a61d8a2b-8e61-486f-8132-3ba9e1233836/
Brooklyn Case- This case is about a 20-year-old assaulting and attempting to rape a 21-year-old mother. He was sentenced to 10 years for the rape case and 5 years for the assault case. (1964) Whitmore Quilty of Rape Attempt in Brooklyn Case, By New York Times https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1964/11/19/97357379.html?pageNumber=43
New Jersey Case- This case is about how 5 teen-aged boys sexually assaulted a mildly mentally challenged 17-year-old girl. This case spilt this small town. Some people were agreeing to the judges call and others were resenting it. All 5 boys were charged. (1989). Town in New Jersey Jarred by Rape Case, By Robert Hanley https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1989/05/26/issue.html
Witch Hunt Case- In this case a man is charged with sexual assault and claims he was a victim of a "witch hunt" to try to get out of it. This cases was dropped and no one was charged. (1990) Gonzo Time : Hunter Thompson, Facing Drug, Sexual Assault Charges, Claims He’s the Victim of ‘Witch Hunt’, By Dan Morain
Florida Case- This case is about 4 white men raping a black co-ed. The judge sentenced them all life in prison but the jury was not happy about that. They ended up going to another trial and since the jury was a group of all white men they were found not guilty. (1959) Landmark 1959 rape case in Tallahassee, Florida was central to the Civil Rights Movement , By Danielle McGuire https://daniellemcguire.com/2018/03/01/landmark-1959-tallahassee-rape-case-central-to-civil-rights-movement/
Hospital case- This case is about a guard and a cleaner of a hospital sexually assaulting a patient. The only thing that came from it was they were suspended from their jobs. (1989) Guard and Cleaner are Suspended in Sexual Assault Case at Hospital, By Sam Howe Verhovek https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1989/01/30/294089.html?pageNumber=21
References:
Christopher. (n.d.). United States crime rates 1960 t0 2019. Retrieved May 3, 2022, from https://www.disastercenter.com/crime/uscrime.htm
FBI. (2011, January 18). The Vault. FBI. Retrieved May 3, 2022, from https://vault.fbi.gov/
Find a case (pacer). United States Courts. (n.d.). Retrieved May 3, 2022, from https://www.uscourts.gov/court-records/find-case-pacer
Landmark 1959 rape case in Tallahassee, Florida was central to the Civil Rights Movement. (2017). The Past Is Never Dead. https://daniellemcguire.com/2018/03/01/landmark-1959-tallahassee-rape-case-central-to-civil-rights-movement/
News from California, the nation and world. (n.d.). Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 5, 2022, from https://www.latimes.com/
The New York Times. (2018, August 28). NYT: Tech talk for 12/27/2007. The New York Times. Retrieved May 3, 2022, from https://www.nytimes.com/
WP Company. (n.d.). Breaking news, World, US, DC News and analysis. The Washington Post. Retrieved May 3, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/
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