And a failure rate of 99 percent—that’s the punch line. It dawns on me, of course, that rape victims are never meant to win. We’re not meant to survive this at all. If we make it through the rape without drowning in our own blood, law enforcement, the justice system, and America itself are there to finish the job. To quiet our voices and sever our tongues. To betray us a second time. That’s what it means to be raped.
