Rape Victim Goes On YouTube To Ask For Help (VIDEO)

CNN reports on the wrenching video of a crying 16-year-old girl who turned to YouTube to plead for help in prosecuting her alleged 23-year-old rapist.

Watch the video below and read more underneath from CNN about this strange story.

The teen, whom CNN interviewed but is not identifying by her last name, is among dozens of young people who are turning to social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace to talk about sexual assault.

For an online generation, the Web offers what traditional counseling does not. It's a chance to communicate without having to face someone or fear their judgment. Some people are seeking legal advice and medical information, and many younger victims believe they can warn others about their accused attacker, counselors say.

Comments

[snobama]

she meets the demographic of attention seeking teenagers that are supporting his candidacy in droves...

i can hear obama using this in his stump speech...

"the young poor girl in florida... who turned to you-tube for help .. and i say... hope, change .....this time will be different.... yes we can..... yes we can"

applause... !!!! more koolaid for everyone!!!!!

[Chillinout]

Totally off point and an asinine comment to make.

[MrUnlimited]

Seriously? THAT was your response to this video? Stop posting.

[wgb]

you're sad.

[LeftLeanWing]

I am just speechless .......

[jeg]

Flagged. Put down the keyboard, and try to understand there's more to life than your irrational hatred of Senator Obama.

Go outside. Do something productive-- pretend for a day, that you're a useful member of society.

[hopelessobama]

i hope she's not asking obama, no candidate in history is weaker on crime, gang crimes, rape, etc. then senator obama.

[OlskoolDem]

no she's asking Hillary for help and will be used as a Victim before she's then thrown from the HRC train

[MrUnlimited]

You're wrong. Stop posting until you change that. Among other things, Obama sponsored legislation in Illinois requiring police to videotape interrogations in order to prevent coerced confessions.

[JhNyc]

You offer no proof to back up your silly rant -- but, of course, you couldn't, since it isn't true.

[Erdgeist]

A Republican state like Florida is not interested in how many young girls are raped every day. But if they get pregnant--well, now that is important. The fetus needs the full protection of the great state of Florida.

[BushBites]

Being a person, the fetus also has a constitutional right to keep and bear arms.

[amanda85]

This is what I don't get about all the guys who posted nasty comments about this girl: SHE IS A MINOR, HE SHOULD BE BEHIND BARS FOR STATUTORY RAPE. End of story. If this didn't happen, then she has all the rights to complain until it does happen.

[sheila]

i think they only incarcerate blacks for statutory rape down there, and only if the boy is very young, too, and only if the sex is consensual, so that may be the reason? old white guys raping young teens doesn't count.

remember, just last year in Geawgia:

African American Genarlow Wilson was sentenced to 10 years in jail for having consensual sex at a New Years Eve party with a 15 year-old, when he was 17 years-old.

[Jimmyboyo]

She is lucky she didn't get pregnant

She is lucky that mccain isn't president with his NO exceptions on abortion even for RAPE, incest or life of the mother

[LeftLeanWing]

This has nothing to do with McCain - You Boob

[paganmist]

Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch.

This is... I don't know how to-- ugh. This is really horrible. I am personally offended. I mean, every word she spoke made me wince. This is really, really terrible. What is going on in Florida!?

I seriously hope that someone takes the time to go down there, because this girl seriously needs some help. This can't possible get more awful.

Is there anyone who might be interested in helping me set up a petition? Because Florida is in serious need of some better acting coaches.

This girl seriously deserves a refund.

[thefooligan5]

yeah, i smell a fake as well.
But I was thinking that perhaps this girl has a friend or knows of someone who was in a similar situation and this girl (et al?) decided to make this video as a sort of propaganda to try to pressure the floridian legal system's hand when it comes to rape cases. This is about the only logical reason I can think of for making this video because my BS meter was off the charts during the watching of this video.
The story beyond the video however, whether it be true or not, is important. Young girls and women of all ages are being raped everywhere across this land and others and a more public conversation on the topic is never a bad thing.

[JNo]

I almost hate to say it, but here goes... My first thought was "is this real"? I can't say I've heard many teenagers talk about being raised in "poverty", even if it's an apt description.

[frl]

look, i don't want to come across as a b!tch, but when she keeps saying how "poor" she is, i keep thinking... "damn, girl, you're awfully well groomed for being so poor... got your hair all nice and your brows all done, and where in the hell did you get that equipment for putting this on youtube??" anyway, i smell a fake. and if that is not the case, then i'm sorry. if it is, then she should really be ashamed of herself.

[provgrays]

So a poor person can't be attractive and well groomed?

What is your problem?

[Igglesbee]

Congratulations - you win for the most ignorant argument!

Poor people are not dirty. Rich people do not have a monopoly on good grooming. Almost all American teenagers have access to a shower, a comb, and a pair of tweezers should they need them.

A computer is a teeny, tiny expense compared to attorney's fees. But, if you insist she's not poor enough to need help, consider this: poor people do have friends, possibly even friends with "that equipment" needed to post a video. Which, by the way, is actually pretty cheap, and required for most students today.

Maybe you can stop judging her long enough to realize that even not-so-poor people suffer when they're raped and ignored by the legal system. She's just a kid - she has no idea what poor is; and my guess is, compared to her friends, she's dirt poor.

[KOisGod]

I couldn't watch it. (work) but I'm sure Gloria Allred is seeing if there's some cash at stake, and if she can get some more MSM face time.

[LeftLeanWing]

Gloria Allred, the She-Buzzard of High-Profile Scandal,

[jgalvan]

A prosecutor in the State of Florida (2nd in death penalty cases) doesn't want to prosecute? Must have not past the smell test.

[gamoonbat]

She deserves an answer from the district attorney. It may be that the perpetrator is going away for other crimes anyway. They could have made a plea bargain. Statutory rape does not necessarily carry more time than burglary.

The comments which folks have made about her video on YouTube are really sick.

[maca]

Sorry, but this is whole situation is suspect. If you read the entire CNN article, it states that both of them admitted to consensual sex, which turned out to be statutory rape because she was one month away from the age of consent. A crime, yes, but why is she is crying as though she were attacked in a back alley by a sex maniac because her boyfriend wasn't convicted? I'm not saying sex with a minor is ok, and of course the guy should be punished. But no sensible person would say that consensual sex when only 30 DAYS too young carries the same level of trauma as being "attacked". This smells like a kid who's been convinced by a bunch of adults that she's been horribly victimized, or is seeking her 15 minutes, or a little of both. I'm not one of these "blame the victim" types who's insensitive to the issue of rape, it's just that this particular young woman rings phony to me, and the tears seem very forced.

[joebaggadonuts]

Given the decision to not prosecute, she is opening herself up to a law suit by the other party. This kind of thing is not smart, regardless of the merits of her case.

[cheneyhasawarmachine]

i'm sorry but this is fake. she is a decent actress but she is far too controlled with her statement.

[Thinkbolt]

I agree. This is an actress. I could be wrong, but I don't think I am. Just give it a few days.

[djmediafreak]

I think you both need to read the CNN article....it's not fake and she's not an actress. This is the actual person affected by this, which has been confirmed by CNN in the article when they went to interview her. As far as the video is concerned, I don't think she's faking one bit. She is saying and doing things consistent of those who have been victimized in some fashion, including being raped. She took a chance putting out a video asking for help regardless of what happens as a result.

In my experiences in dealing with victimization, the media seems to put an overemphasis on the stories that are shown to be false or "fake," which raises skepticism whenever a story about rape or bullying like this pops up. In one consequence to this, I've found that those who have never really had to deal with victimization directly are usually the ones who regularly respond with "it's not true" and "this is fake." They don't have those experiences and as a result only have the media and maybe the people around them (who've probably never dealt with it either) to gauge on how to react. Unfortunately, that seems to describe a majority of the population, which makes it that much harder for those who have been victimized (raped, bullied, severely teased, etc.) to get the support or help they need. IMHO, that's a pretty regrettable state of affairs.

[vmonter]

Why would I ever want to watch something like this?

[VcKrc]

Nancy Grace will come calling now that she's all over the news. Hopefully they hang up on her.

[BigSid]

SO FAKE!

Give it a couple weeks and the truth of what happened will be revealed.