In class we talked about how the government tried to completely cover up the banana massacre, and how many people view foreigners coming in and taking over as “rape.” We also discussed rape in the context of Ursula and her family. It made me think about the documentary The Hunting Ground, which unveils the truth about rape on college campuses. The documentary, which came out in 2015, gave some pretty scary statistics and a look into these universities in violation of Title IX. Like the government with the banana massacre, often universities want to completely cover up the abuse that occurs on their campuses. They discourage survivors from telling anybody about their experiences. Why? Is that discouragement to protect these young women and men? No! They do it to protect the university’s image, and all too often they do it in the name of money. For example, several universities stalled expelling student-athletes for sexual assault (!) so that those athletes could finish their seasons—seasons that, if successful, could lead to money for the university. But surprise surprise, those athletes were expelled upon conclusion of their seasons. Coincidence? Definitely not. (And in case anyone’s wondering, Florida State University was the one most prominently featured in terms of this issue of catering to rapists who also happen to be student-athletes.) Any university can claim to care about the wellbeing of their students, but do they really? Maybe the professors do, but what about the institution? It seems this issue is something colleges have in common with the forces involved in the banana massacre: concern over publicity and money. Instead of revealing the truth to contribute to well-informed citizens, both would rather just cover everything up.
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Interesting perspective, and rather terrifying to think that the gruesome and inhumane events of the Banana Massacre could even slightly parallel institutions in the United States which are depended upon for guidance and education (anyone sensing some hypocrisy here?).
I think another point to back up your argument would be the specific questions rape victims are often asked:
"Are you SURE it was rape?"
"Did you lead them on?"
"Maybe you're confused on what happened, your attacker seems to have a different perspective."
Something else I find noteworthy: it's not just the colleges. Just think about those judges who "condemn" perpetrators to ridiculously light sentences (like "sexual education" remediation classes). Similarly, I'm sure you could find many a person in the United States who would support the U.S.'s decisions/involvement in the United Fruit Company massacre.
"Oh, but it wasn't really a massacre, it was just...a cleansing..."
"Well, it was the strikers' fault; they shouldn't have been provoking!"
"I think you people who were present at the massacre don't really know what happened. I mean, the U.S. says it wasn't a massacre, so I guess it wasn't!"
Another point: rape culture is being addressed more and more often and vociferously across college campuses and otherwise nationwide (though clearly we've still got a loooooong way to go, especially in light of recent political events). I think there's another parallel we could find here. In Marquez's Nobel speech, he urges the people of Latin America to take their past, present, and future in their hands and really actively address it. Of course there are many, many examples of this very action concerning assault victims, but one that comes to mind is that of Emma Sulkowicz. While her attacker was basically exonerated by Columbia University (both were students there at the time of the attack, and the attacker was found "not responsible," citing his "very difficult" time), she refused to be silenced. She's known as "mattress girl" because she used a mattress (symbolic of the weight carried by rape survivors every day) as her senior thesis. She carried it around on campus and even across the stage at graduation. She became a voice for survivors even in the face of heavy criticism and demeaning allegations.
Well, in summation, it's quite terrifying to find these similarities.
Again, interesting point, if a scary one that some people might prefer to ignore.
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