The student news site of Mountlake Terrace High School in Mountlake Terrace, Washington.

The Hawkeye

The student news site of Mountlake Terrace High School in Mountlake Terrace, Washington.

The Hawkeye

The student news site of Mountlake Terrace High School in Mountlake Terrace, Washington.

The Hawkeye

Hawkeye/HSM Fundraisers
Get the App
BUY HAWK PHOTOS
Digital Print Edition
The Hawkeye March 2024 issue
1st Amendment Award School
FAPFA award school

Alcohol is no excuse for assault

“I like beer,” said then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh during his Senate confirmation hearing. “Do you like beer, Senator [Whitehouse], or not? What do you like to drink?”

I’m sure Senator Whitehouse enjoys beer, but is this necessarily the best defense after being accused of sexually assaulting someone in high school? Maybe you had a blackout and sexually assaulted her. Maybe you don’t remember because that’s something no one wants to look back on.

Kavanaugh talked about alcohol to the point where I thought, “Why is this relevant?” I wouldn’t be so concerned about this if he didn’t mention it every few minutes.

I was concerned not only about beer, but about how he said, “Yes, we drank beer, my friends and I; boys and girls, we drank beer. Yes, I drank beer. I like beer, still like beer. Sometimes I had too many beers and others had too many beers. I like beer.” OK, Kavanaugh, I think we all understand. You like beer.

Maybe you should ask yourself if beer is the reason you sexually assaulted her. Maybe you mentioned beer as a way to side track from why you were actually at the Senate hearing and to not recognize what you did.

While I wish Kavanaugh had not been confirmed to the Supreme Court, there was not enough evidence to prove the allegations against him, and the evidence there wasn’t enough to have the Senators vote no.

Not only mentioning beer, but also saying, “I’ve always had a lot of close female friends” doesn’t make you look any more innocent. Not a good time to mention all your female friends, buddy. How many other girls did you sexually assault, then, too?

The #MeToo movement has given women and girls the courage to speak out about being sexually assaulted. If you’re one of those people who believes coming out about being sexual assaulted is easy, it’s not.

It’s emotionally draining on the person, and once multiple people find out, that one person begins to lose friends. I know from personal experience.

Story continues below advertisement

Don’t pressure anyone to come out about sexual assault. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford was very brave. She knew she was risking humiliation, and possible death threats; the way Kavanaugh handled himself through the whole hearing was disappointing.

Leave a Comment
About the Contributor
Samantha Svikel, Op-Ed Editor
Samantha Svikel is a senior and in her fourth year on the Hawkeye staff. She is the Op-Ed Editor and enjoys teaching others. She is dedicated to Journalism and communications and enjoys feature writing.
More to Discover
error: Content is protected !!

Comments (0)

All The Hawkeye Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *