The Question Nobody Wants To Ask About The Cornell Seven

Every couple of years, a rape case stirs debate in incredibly polarizing ways. To say these cases are treated by the commentariat as black and white is understating the extent to which everyone is placed on a side: either “we believe women” or “women are liars who play victim to victimize men.” To question what is technically legal vs. what is technically criminal is treated as an affront by feminists who believe the justice system never does justice for victims of sexual assault, and those who can see harm and reprehensible behavior enacted by the men accused, without necessarily casting them as rapists, are treated with vicious mockery by those in the “feminism went too far and it’s time for your comeuppance” faction.  

The hyperbole surrounding these media firestorms has not helped the discourse.