Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Back to Opinion

A Perp Walk

The sordid tale of Dominque Strauss-Kahn — as of this writing, he is sitting in a New York jail and charged with sexual assault — is both a cautionary sign of progress and a warning of how difficult it is to convince even supposedly smart people that rape is a violent crime.

The details of this story are by now well known, as is Strauss-Kahn’s plea of not guilty. Like all accused, he deserves the presumption of innocence. That said, there is some satisfaction in seeing the claims of his alleged victim considered so seriously. The prediliction of men in power to take brutal advantage of women who work for them — in the ordinary office, the fancy hotel, the fancier mansion, wherever — is centuries old, and even in these modern times, seems to continue unabated. (See: Schwarzenegger, Arnold.)

But while Americans may perceive a sense of justice-for-all at the sight of the powerful chief of the International Monetary Fund handcuffed on the perp walk, the French see an assault to their misogynist elitism. It’s sobering to read the defense of Strauss-Kahn by his friends and ideological allies — not because of their sympathy for a person they admire, which is understandable, but because of the expectation that he be treated differently than any other man in America accused of forcing himself on an unwitting partner.

The very fact that the French press is naming the maid who has accused Strauss-Kahn of attempted rape is another illustration of insensitivity toward victims. It’s harmful enough that the American media have sussed out her neighborhood and family, tarring her before justice has had a chance to run its course.

As the Israeli public painfully learned with the rape conviction of former president Moshe Katsav, the sight of powerful men forced to answer to the law can upend a society’s notions of class and gender. It can also put on notice those who believe it is their right to violently take advantage of the powerless.

About time.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.