Rosa Parks: Sexual Assault Investigator

Rosa Parks is known for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955. That refusal was a spark for the civil rights movement in the US. 

Standing up for what was fair and just was not new to Parks. She joined the NAACP in 1943 and worked on criminal justice issues as a sexual assault investigator. She investigated claims of rape against black men by white women--working to protect black men from false accusations of rape. She was also committed to making sure that black people who were sexually assaulted by white people could seek justice.  The Rape of Recy Taylor is a film that chronicles one of the cases that Rosa Parks brought to national attention. 

For more about Rosa Parks' important work and her own experience with stopping sexual assault, check out "Before the Bus, Rosa Parks Was a Sexual Assault Investigator."

Department of Justice Addresses Gender and Race Bias

Attorney General Loretta Lynch has announced that the Department of Justice has new guidelines for addressing sexual assault cases in local departments and communities. Officers are to treat victims with respect, investigate each complaint, test all rape kits, and keep data on each case.  Officers who commit sexual assault and domestic violence are to be held accountable by their local departments for their behavior.

            Carol Tracy, executive director of the women’s law project, recommends that local departments also need to raise awareness of the ways that racial bias affect policy and practice. For more details, see Danielle Paquette “Gender and racial stereotypes derail rape investigations, attorney general says.”