22342: anonymous: Haiti and rape

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

I may have missed part of the discussion of the treatment of women in
Haitian
society, but based on my experience as a student of Haitian language and
culture, I agree with the writer's opinions. To say that within Haitian
culture
the rape of women is somehow routine or normal runs contradictory to my
experiences with both the men and women of this often misrepresented
society.
And it seems yet another attempt to demonize--yes, primitivize--Haitians
and
their cultural practices.  Based on the statistics of rape in U.S. society
(during their lifetime, 1 in 7 U.S. women will be raped [Henslin. J.
Social
Problems.  Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 2003]), one could
certainly
say the same about Americans  (If you feel you have to post this, Prof. C,
please make it anonymous. Thanks!)