Article Title: “Rape on the Reservation,”
Author: Louise Erdrich
Publisher: New York Times
Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/27/opinion/native-americans-and-the-violence-against-women-act.html
In an article titled Rape on the Reservation¸ Louise Erdrich tackles the issue of rape as a form of violence against women, particularly in Minnesota. The article builds on the recent amendments that the Senate made on the Women Act of 1994 that identified crimes like rape and domestic abuse as matters of human rights (Erdrich, 2013). The author notes the opposition of House Republicans to the bill for its provisions affording more protections such vulnerable populations as American Indians, undocumented immigrants, the gay and lesbian, and bisexual and transgender youth.
The author cites statistical data from the Justice Department reports that at least one in three Native American women is raped in her lifetime. The decline of federal prosecutors to prosecute 67 percent of reported sexual abuse is said to demoralize many Native women from reporting rape (Erdrich, 2013). Furthermore, tribal courts do not offer justice recourse to native women battered by their non-Native husbands.
The article tackles a serious issue in the society – domestic and sexual violence against Native American women which does not receive sufficient justice. The article is written in simple language and generally short sentences that can be easily understood by the reader. The structural organization of the article is such it starts with a catchy introductory sentence on an issue in the public domain. The author then proceeds to present the subject matter of the article using facts and statistics from credible government and independent sources.
Beginning the second half of the article the author takes a position on the issue and builds his case by referring the state of affairs of the law and positions of key players in the legislation. The article ends by suggestions solutions to the problem – calling for legal protection of women against rape and domestic violence as a whole.
Reference:
Erdrich, L. (2013). Rape on the Reservation. Retrieved from: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/27/opinion/native-americans-and-the-violence-against-women-act.html
