Self Referral Bill / Gender
By: Cara Mackay
Tags: Rape

This is why the Self Referral Bill is a women led agenda:

91% of Sexual Assault Survivors are women.

1 in 5 women in Scotland have had someone try to have sex with them against their will.

So, why is Gender now dictating the treatment of survivors.

The lack of any conscious clarity from either side on why gender is up for discussion undermines the entire purpose of the Bill and overshadows all the work put in by survivors of sexual assault to get to this point.

I understand the passion this kind of conversation can create but the constant noise and fierce objection from both sides, which results in a personal attack on anyone who dares enter the arena, is the biggest downfall to womankind.

At the forefront of this, by a massive majority, is women, whether you are born one or identify as one. We are making a decision for our women, who we all want to protect and provide safety for. I cannot speak for Trans-women as I am not one, but what I do know this;

If we all want to protect women, then this must be addressed with the right intention. And in no way to score points for an entirely different conversation.

As part of my work with SRG (Survivors Reference Group) we were enlisted to help shape a new law that would allow survivors of sexual assault to refer themselves for forensic examination without police intervention.

This is seen as a solution to the inhumane, humiliating trauma of what Survivors of sexual assault are currently subjected to when they report a crime.

Out of all the women in our panel, not one received the same experience after they reported an attack. The variation of districts seemed to play a part in this. Some city’s like Glasgow have a more responsive unit outside of the police that work with the Survivors directly after. Other area’s like The Borders, appear to be completely negligent in their offering of “duty to protect and serve”.

You would think after all the generations, all the progressive actions and the modern day movements, looking after a woman who has just been raped would be simple.

My district (Dundee) led me, like a 5 year old child to motorway to play chicken, to be examined (after 4 hours of questioning) by an on-call, completely incoherent male doctor who didn’t utter one word of reassurance as I screamed horror and jilted my body, clenching my thighs like steel clamps. I waled for the female police officer who stood behind the curtain to come to me, “Sorry I can’t Mrs Marshall” she wasn’t allowed.

I didn’t appreciate the extent of my experience until I first took part in an SRG meeting. By the time I was willing to admit to myself that I was a survivor of rape and it wasn’t something I could walk away from, it had been 5 years since my attack. Sitting in that room with the strongest of women, some who were less than months from their survival, was undoubtedly the most admiration I’ve ever felt for any human, never mind a whole boardroom of them.

If you were part of that room, that day, with the Lord Advocate and Minister of Justice for Scotland… You may remember, I couldn’t get my words out. A bit of a mess really, and not what I envisioned for my first “fight for survivors”. However, this is just that. We started something. And although it’s taking women like Brenna and Sandy to lead, we need each other to make it possible.

We’re told a bill is complicated, it takes months, sometimes years. From June 2019 turns to November 2020 and here we are, on the cusp of a new law, giving those who don’t even know they need it, a law to protect them. To hold them up, pull them forward, away from the dark and into safety. Someone they can see who is not only qualified but capable of withstanding the almighty responsibility that comes with taking care of a survivor.

“Trauma is not remembered as a story with a narrative; beginning, middle, end. But isolated sensory imprints, images, sound and physical sensations, accompanied by intense emotions, usually terror and helplessness.”

The Body Keeps the Score (Van Der Kolk 2014)

So I say this, with the utmost respect to all. When a female is sexually assaulted and seeks refuge at self referral, I will not stand for gender to be the priority. We must assume that a female survivor of a male attack would want to see a female examiner.

I know the government needs a language that’s inclusive. We all want one that represents our whole country, whatever shape or form they take. But this bill is not the argument, it’s not your argument.

This is our fight. We, the survivors. We are women but we’re also men and everyone in between. If we need to be specific about seeing someone of the same sex on first contact after an attack you better believe that’s the fucking priority.

I believe crimes that result in trauma do not belong in the criminal courts. I believe the true reform belongs in an abolishment of our current judicial system. Until then, I will continue to strive and put myself forward to make the lives of those who have no idea they’ll ever need it, that little bit more manageable.

WRITTEN BY

@NattyShedGirl I make the best Sheds in the world. T1 Mum, Adoptive Mum, Step Mum. SRG campaigner and #IndyRef2 believer. #ShedLife #MeToo #SwearyGate #CDWM