One choice shouldn’t cancel another

Imagine you are at a roller coaster park with your friends and you’ve gone on a few smaller rides but they want to go on a bigger ride. You aren’t interested and don’t feel well so you wait near the line and hold the bags. Would it be okay for the person operating the line to force you onto the ride just because they saw you go on a small ride earlier? 

If you have any common sense the answer is no. No, it is not okay to force people to do things they don’t want to do at the cost of their emotional distress. 

Now a roller coaster might not be so bad, but forcing things on people doesn’t just happen with roller coasters. 

Specifically I’m referencing the unanimous decision of the Minnesota Supreme Court, that a person cannot be convicted of rape(and it was rape) if the person who was raped were voluntarily drunk. 

The court said that because they can’t just make the law whatever they wish it was, they had to rule what the law states can happen. I understand that they can’t just make or edit laws or their meanings at random. There is a process to do so. However, I question why the law permits this to happen.

The woman in this case, was blacked out and passed out on a couch when she was taken advantage of. She said she woke up on the couch when he was raping her and refused consent. She passed back out and woke up later with her shorts around her ankles. 

Looking at the case it seems obvious to me that it was not consensual. After all she was asleep when it happened and for the short amount of time she was awake she said no. 

Why is a simple no so hard to respect? 

She said yes to drinking, not yes to some man that thought she was cute. Her decision to drink shouldn’t cancel out her choice to not consent. 

This law has allowed a man to get off with a lesser charge of fifth degree rape, which is a gross misdemeanor, according to the Washington Post. The law has failed the woman in this case and rewarded another guilty man with lesser charges. The states with laws similar to this need to take a look at who this law benefits and make a change. 

If changes aren’t made then any drinking becomes far riskier for women. Not only do women have to worry about their drinks being drugged, we must now worry that choosing to drink in any amount takes away our right to give and take away consent. 

If we aren’t allowed to deny consent after we choose to drink date rape statistics will soar. Under this law all a man has to do is appear nice enough for a woman to trust even a small drink around. Then once she’s had one drink any man can take advantage of her with no consequences. 

It makes it comically easy for rapists to get away with their crimes. 

We must stop blaming women and other victims for someone’s choice not to respect their choice not to consent. 

I understand that right now the courts must follow the law as it currently is. The fact that it hasn’t been looked at or changed to fix this obvious hole, is what really bothers me. How many people has this law allowed to escape harder consequences, and how many victims did not receive the justice they deserve.