THE WAR OVER JUSTICE, INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY

In recent months, the Internet has been used to expose the extent of sexual violence crimes and endemic efforts to quell the pursuit of justice in the face of them. The Internet group Anonymous, a loose collective of private citizens, has used the Internet to gather evidence against rapists and in some cases, evidence against officials indicating efforts on their part to bury cases of incredible violence, where charges have been dropped and retaliation against the victims who have come forward in pursuit of justice by members of their communities has been nothing less than jaw-dropping, ultimately exposing the culture that allows sexual assault, rape and gang rape to be perpetuated.

The Steubenville gang rape case was exposed by KYAnonymous, a man who was moved into action by the 13-minute video uploaded to various social media sites discussing the gang rape of an underage girl in such horrific detail that watching the video is almost impossible. KYAnonymous gathered information from social media sites before the evidence was deleted and ultimately helped reveal the identities of the rapists, as well as the efforts to bury the case before any justice could be served. Esquire Magazine’s November article on KYAnonymous, details KYAnonymous’s efforts and role in the case being pursued, as well as the ongoing war over knowledge, Internet exposure and justice. KYAnonymous is facing charges now for his involvement in breaking the case that could land him in federal prison for his use of the Internet in service to exposing the initial injustice the victim experienced. Read the Esquire article on Derek, KYAnonymous himself, and his experience here:

And Anonymous is at it again, picking up another gang rape of two 14-year old girls in Marysville, Missouri, whose stories are equally horrific. Gang-raped by a group of athletes from her own high-school and left for dead in the snow outside of her mother’s home, 14-year old Daisy Coleman has written an article about her experience and the ongoing consequences for her family that Anonymous has picked up in an effort to make sure justice is served, and that the continued efforts to conceal the case are stopped. Since Anonymous got involved, using the Internet to expose this case and its aftermath, the Governor of Missouri has demanded a new investigation in the case and according to Democracy Now, a rally of several hundred people took place in the town of Marysville yesterday to show support for Daisy and her best friend. Read Daisy’s account here.

Wherever you stand on the Internet information debate, Anonymous is breaking cases where identities are revealed, secrecy shattered and justice being pursued.

And the voices of victims are being heard, standing for the countless victims of sexual violence, as Daisy’s voice does when she declares: “I not only survived, I didn’t give up…This is a victory, not just for me, but for every girl.”

All peace to you. Dora