While at a St. Lawrence University town hall in New York on April 15, John Kasich caused a stir for telling a female student “don’t go to parties where there is a lot of alcohol.” The response in response to a sexual assault question drew particular fire from the DNC for “blaming victims,” which even suggested “it is no wonder women are turning away from the Republican field in huge numbers.”
Charlotte Allen, for Independent Women’s Forum, provided an amusing but serious take on why Kasich should stay away from such responses. “A generation or two ago,” she noted. “‘Don’t go to parties where there’s a lot of alcohol’ was known as “good advice from your mom and dad.” Now, it’s known as ‘victim-blaming.'”
CNN noted in their reporting that Kasich clarified his response to reporters after the even on Friday. “That has nothing to do with saying that somebody who has been a victim is somehow responsible,” he noted after explaining that alcohol “obscures the ability of people to seek justice,” a point which he emphasized to Dana Bash for Sunday’s State of the Union.
“I’m the one that has led the way in the country to fight this and to get justice served in these conditions.” Kasich also claimed. Cincinnati.com spoke to rape survivor groups and those involved with the state government to look into what they called “a bold claim.”
Ohio is one of the few states which sets aside money to collect data and train school staff to respond to campus sexual assault, which includes $2 million in the state budget and $3 million federal money. “Ohio and the governor have had a good record on this issue,” says Scott Berkowitz, president of the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). Terri Poore, Policy Director for the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence echoed that view.
Get the Exclusive
04.25.2024