By now, everyone has heard the ghastly story of Jaycee Lee Dugard's 18 year captivity by a convicted sexual predator.
But how many people have ever heard of Dwayne Dail? Did Dwayne Dail's story ever assume national prominence? Mr. Dail was wrongly incarcerated for -- you guessed it -- 18 years, for an alleged rape he didn't commit. While in prison, he was subjected to almost unspeakable atrocities. Among other things, he was repeatedly victimized by the very crime for which he was incarcerated but did not commit.
You see, Mr. Dail was convicted and sentenced to two life sentences plus 18 years for good measure all because a girl claimed he looked like the man who supposedly raped her. That's right: a 12-year-old girl pointed the finger of guilt at Dwayne Dail, and that was enough to destroy him.
I'll bet that if it weren't for this blog, most of you never would have heard about Dwayne Dail.
Other men have served even longer sentences for rapes they didn't commit. While their releases from captivity are reported by the news media, there is precisely zero national fascination with their ordeals, and few people pay any attention to their stories.
The nation is rightfully outraged about Ms. Dugard's captivity. Yet somehow we find a far more common sort of captivity, a captivity that is also atrocious, acceptable. It's the captivity that results when alleged rape victims use the state apparatus to destroy the lives of innocent men and boys.
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9 comments:
Dead on, powerful post. You are right.
And I don't want to hear from the usual apologists who will insist that Mr. Dail's captivity was just a mistake, not an act of evil. Damn right it was a "mistake" -- a "mistake" that the state routinely allows through sheer indifference to the wrongly accused. A "mistake" the state countenances, engenders, and foments by giving the power to destroy men and boys to little girls. That sort of "mistake" can only be called evil. Mr. Dail's story could be the story of any Y-Chromosome bearing member of this audience.
And while the Dail accuser might have been mistaken, spend several days reading through this blog to see instances of false accusations -- where the accuser outright lied -- that led to men and boys being deprived of their liberty. It is very, very common.
But it's supposed to be okay to destroy innocent men or even incarcerate them for decades, because otherwise some guilty men would get away.
It's not as if men feel pain the same way that a woman or child does.
"I'll bet that if it weren't for this blog, most of you never would have heard about Dwayne Dail."
You would win that bet.
Perhaps there is so much more attention to the Dugard case because it is so unusual?
I mean, men falsely accused and convicted of rape and say they're innocent are just like any other guy in jail who says he didn't do it.
EW, I agree with you -- it's not news when men are falsely convicted for sex crimes. Note that all of the news stories about the men falsely convicted are only news when the men are released. How many more innocents are in custody claiming they are innocent -- we don't know because we never hear about it.
We, as a society, have made a little truce with injustice -- some innocent men are sacrificed so that more alleged rape victims will come forward and report their alleged victimizations. The men's ordeals are considered "unfortunate," but not incredibly alarming.
This attitude is extremely gynocentric. The important victim is the female; the only perspective that matters is the perspective of the purported rape victim; the male victim of the false rape claim doesn't matter much. That about sums up the problem.
Anonymous said...
But it's supposed to be okay to destroy innocent men or even incarcerate them for decades, because otherwise some guilty men would get away.
It's not as if men feel pain the same way that a woman or child does.
Are you kidding?We men are human beings. There is nothing that a woman or child can feel that we cannot. Have you not read the stories of men leaving court rooms in tears after not only being falsely accused but, metaphorically having their pants yanked down and their anal orifices probed in front of the public? They are forced to live the rest of their destroyed lives in shock and trauma. If you are being sarcastic I do apologize.
Elusive Wapiti said...
"I'll bet that if it weren't for this blog, most of you never would have heard about Dwayne Dail."
You would win that bet.
I agree. If it were not for this site, how many of us would know the truth regarding false accusation of rape or other violent sexual crimes existed? How would we knew the names of any of the falsely accused? Who would give voice to the falsely accused?
Perhaps there is so much more attention to the Dugard case because it is so unusual?
I agree. Of course each case deserves all of the attention it can get and, more.
I mean, men falsely accused and convicted of rape and say they're innocent are just like any other guy in jail who says he didn't do it.
This, IMHO, is the "catch 22" of the system. Both guilty and innocent are all lumped together. The state and the system do not care who is truely innocent or who is truely guilty. IMHO, only in this instance are ALL considered equal. How many times have we heard someone profess innocence but, the evidence against them is so heavy , there seems to be no way of believing they are innocent?
I hear not only feminists but the general public say " Yeah, they're innocent. They ALL say they are innocent. That's why they are where they are". They base their opinion on not only what the media has fed them in news reports but, also on prejudices and biases they have been "programmed" with.
Very few citizens decern what they see and/or hear.
I was talking to my friend and she said that her cousin was locked up because he just turned 18 and was dating a girl that he didnt know was 16 the rich dad walked in and cought them in the act she screamed rape and he was in jail for 7 years because of that.. and come to find out she is looking for him to be with him again.. Really?!?
This kinda stuff just makes me sick why would anyone do that to someone and know the whole time that she was with him but didnt want her daddy to know about it...
This, IMHO, is the "catch 22" of the system. Both guilty and innocent are all lumped together. The state and the system do not care who is truely innocent or who is truely guilty.
That's right. In our society violent crimes are sensationalized while injustices committed by the legal system are swept under the rug. No wonder the American people can hardly wait to throw their rights away.
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