How To Support A Much-Needed Bill That Protects New York Women

Would you believe that in New York, your having one too many drinks can in a roundabout legal way be argued as your consent to being raped?

Such is the current state of things in New York and many other states around the country thanks to an archaic, ignorant crack in the system known as the Voluntary Intoxication Loophole. 

Infuriated much?

You're not alone. Philanthropist, entrepreneur and society staple Lizzie Asher couldn't believe when she learned of this loophole, immediately jumping into action. Asher has started an important petition to support State Senator Alessandra Biaggi's bill S452 (A5519A), which would prohibit the use of a victim's intoxication as a defense in sex crimes.

Be sure to sign your name today to show the state legislature what an incredibly crucial change this is!

Should you like to lend more than just your name to the cause, Cura Collective will be hosting an NY Loophole Law Awareness Event on Wednesday, April 20th to spread the word and information on how further to get involved. 

On how Asher came to start the petition...

Reading! Guess sleepless nights can be productive. I was catching up on some pieces, one of which was about the legal outcome of a rape case in Minnesota. Essentially, a woman was raped by her co-worker who had offered her a ride home following a Christmas party. The article narrated how the perpetrator was able to walk away with an "unwanted touching" offense rather than a rape charge. The reason: the victim had on her own drank one too many cocktails at the holiday party! The article ended by saying that this legal scenario was actually the way rape laws operated in the majority of states in the country. I thought, surely not in New York. I checked. I was wrong. 

I looked further into this to understand how NY, a state that we all so pride ourselves of being an example of progressive laws, was behind even North Carolina when it came to protecting rape victims. After all, this is an issue that doesn't simply affect women but also members of the LBGQT community. And yet, it was baffling that in 2022 the victims were still being blamed for the actions of their attackers. I researched further and found a ray of hope: State Senator Biaggi had introduced legislation to end what is called the "Rape Intoxication Loophole." 

On how she hopes the petition will impact the bill to close the loophole...

Reaching out to State Senator Biaggi proved to be the one of many steps that still lie ahead to close the Rape Intoxication Loophole. During our call, I received a tutorial in lobbying, and I learned that first we needed to demonstrate to the State Legislature that people are clamoring to have the bill adopted. Senator Biaggi had introduced the bill to close this loophole three years ago, and every year it had been rejected. I questioned why, and it was revealed that a Democratic State Assemblyman from the Bronx, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, had introduced conflicting legislation. I was stumped. Until that is, I discovered that the State Legislature is 67% male. This make-up makes it virtually impossible for them to understand the power dynamics at play in these cases, or simply put, they just would never be able to stand in our shoes as victims. 

So, I started this petition (fuming!) to let that male majority know that there is a large swath, a majority (even if a silent one right now), that believes it's reprehensible to allow rapists to walk away because their victim got a little tipsy on a night out. Fortunately, I have an incredible group of friends with whom I co-founded Cura Collective so we are all now jointly working together to enlist as many people as possible to support our petition so we can present it to the State Legislature, to Assemblyman Dinowitz, and State Senator Biaggi before the legislative session ends.  

We need mass numbers, so sign, sign, sign is the name of this game!

[Photo via @rosewoodthecarlyle]