It was just after 2 a.m. on a pitch-black Friday morning when Bernadette Greene-Placentia’s life changed. The Democratic candidate for Congressional District 8 strolled across a parking lot to repair a damaged campaign sign. It was a routine she’d followed all summer. This time, she only made it a few yards.

An attacker smashed her over the head. She blacked out. She woke up to find a strange man on top of her.

Greene-Placentia struggled to open her eyes. She felt a sharp pain below her waist. The attacker was pulling his penis out of her.

She heard him mumble something like, “-ic bitch, not a very good fuck,” which her mind filled in as “Democratic bitch,” she recalled. She wasn’t sure that was exactly what he said.

One leg was out of her jean capris. She wore brand-new tennis shoes and a campaign t-shirt. Another man came over. Greene-Placentia felt his weight nudging her left leg further apart. She began swinging her foot at him. “Not even worth it,” she heard the man say as he moved away. He wore black boots and had small feet, she recalled.

The two men left Greene-Placentia face down in the parking lot. The hatch of her silver Jeep Grand Cherokee was still open. The car was still running. She heard music.

She doesn’t remember pulling up her pants or picking herself off the asphalt parking lot. She doesn’t remember closing her Jeep’s hatch and putting her foot on the gas. She doesn’t remember pulling her car into the driveway and collapsing into her bed.

“It’s just these little tiny flashes of things that I do remember,” Greene-Placentia said in an interview with Phoenix New Times. “As much as I don’t want to remember, I’ve tried very, very hard to remember more stuff. But that’s where I’m at.”

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[–] 13 points 1 day ago

This is so fucked up. The events suggest she was being survielled so the attackers knew her routine. It follows they intentionally damaged the sign knowing she would go out in the middle of the night to fix it (she said herself it was a routine). Also they picked a sign that wasn't near a camera.

Not only are they rapists, they're terrorists (because it's pollitically motivated). Are there more people insthe group? Are they being funded? Who's giving them money?

What's really fucked up, is that the FBI should investigate this, but they won't because they, like other parts of the government are compromised (by MAGA).

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  • [–] 23 points 1 day ago

    I believe this is a case where rape was weaponized specifically against the victim, to teach the Democratic bitch a lesson for running for office; the second attacker just gave up cause the point was already made. I believe many women experienced the same due to their support of the suffrage movement 100 years ago.

    Heinous and despicable act by fascist Republicans.

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  • [–] 6 points 1 day ago

    And Americans tell me where I live is so dangerous. Shithole fascist country.

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  • [–] 4 points 1 day ago

    dead rapists can't reoffend

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  • [–] 37 points 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago)

    I fucking hate rapists with every fiber of my being. I'd skin god alive if it meant I could torture every single rapists that has ever walked this forsaken planet. The soulless, mindless, evil you have to have in you to force yourself on someone .

    My partner is a survivor, and I swear on any god that is listening if I ever get the chance, god have mercy on my soul the things I would do to them.

    Fucking sick motherfuckers.

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  • [–] 116 points 2 days ago (3 children)

    Completely insane that there are comments here assigning any degree of blame to her for this situation. The fact that it was 2 in the morning isn't an invitation to rape or be otherwise assaulted.

    Hell, I don't care if someone were nude and fixing a sign that advertised their services as a prostitute. Still not "asking for it".

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    [–] 24 points 2 days ago

    I went to Fox News to read the comment section about this. It's as expected - vile and calling her a liar.

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  • [–] 25 points 2 days ago (2 children)

    At the risk of being called a "not all men apologist" here, I, as a man, can't fathom how anyone could be motivated to rape someone. The mere thought of violating consent to such a degree is physically repulsive to me. And to then add physical assault to that and violate someone who is unconscious, I am at a loss for words. In fact, I can't even being to imagine how you can even go through with that act physically.

    At some level it makes me think that the people perpetrating these acts aren't even human, but that's also a way too convenient excuse to let them off the hook. The really challenging part for me (and I suppose many other men) is accepting that they ARE human, and they walk among us. I have no idea how to deal with this, legitimately.

    I always presume that everyone I meet is a reasonable, non-violent, "normal" person, and it's things like this (rape statistic numbers) that shatter that world view to the point of leaving me simultaneously feeling incredibly angry, powerless, and paranoid about my fellow humans.

    I am so sorry for her and all other victims who've had to experience something so far beyond what I can even begin to imagine, and I know that nothing I say here will make a difference. I hope you're able to heal back to some semblance of yourself before this happened to you, and I will support both monetarily and vocally any effort to eradicate this behaviour from our societies.

    Downvote me if you want for providing this personal perspective in a thread about a victim (and victims) of rape. I don't intend to grandstand here, take attention away from the victim(s), or make myself look like some sort of white knight. I just need a place to share my perspective and I hope Lemmy will allow me to do so.

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    [–] 20 points 2 days ago* (13 children)

    Another horrible crime, and makes me question how people become abusive and controlling criminals, and research points to the theory of "cycle of shitty people", punching down on others, taking their turn, and this is normalized as macho, but it's toxic. The abuse in homes, military, sports, frats, politics, it's all related. Yes, not all turn out abusive and help to break the dysfunctional cycle is needed. Some people will read this and let their egos flare up and insist the healthy ways are "woke". They'll vote for the violent types again, and their female loved ones are worse off for all this toxic pollution. This is not an excuse, but hurt people need therapy, healthy community and healthcare to recover.

    When someone becomes controlling or abusive, the clearest drivers are childhood maltreatment and witnessing violence between caregivers. Research using ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) scores shows a dose-response pattern: people with higher ACE counts face dramatically elevated odds of perpetrating violence later in life. These experiences normalize coercion, damage emotional regulation, and create insecure attachment. The pathway is learned behavior and cumulative trauma.

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    [–] [S] 315 points 3 days ago (82 children)

    I'm sick and tired of men telling me that rape culture doesn't exist, that rape victims should have done something different, they should have worn something different, they should have not gone out alone, I'm fucking sick of all of it.

    We have a problem with misogyny and rape in this country. It doesn't exist in a vacuum on its own.

    Trump is merely a symptom of the rot.

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