WATCH TRAILER

It Was Rape

A film by Jennifer Baumgardner

US | 2013 | 60 minutes | Color | DVD | Order No. 151150

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SYNOPSIS

U.S. sexual assault statistics are startling—and have remained unchanged for decades. The latest White House Council on Women and Girls report reveals that nearly one in five women experiences rape or attempted rape in her lifetime. Among college student victims, who have some of the highest rates of sexual assault, just 12 percent report incidents to law enforcement officials. In earlier studies, 15% of sexual assault victims were younger than 13; 93% of juvenile victims knew their attacker.

IT WAS RAPE gives human faces and voices to statistics, breaking through the silence, denial and victim blaming that allow an epidemic to thrive. Eight women of different backgrounds, ages and ethnicities relate personal stories of surviving sexual assault in their younger years, as well as their struggles toward healing, empowerment, and finally speaking out.
By award-winning feminist author, filmmaker and activist Jennifer Baumgardner, this strikingly relevant documentary will engage all audiences in needed dialogue about the prevalence of sexual assaults in the U.S., at our schools and colleges, and the elements promoting rape culture on and off campus. IT WAS RAPE is a crucial resource for colleges and communities to meaningfully address Title IX issues around sexual violence.

PRESS

"...heartbreaking, terrifying, and important."

Alternet

"The film is especially important now, as the conversation about rape culture is more prevalent than ever. It is an important step in empowering victims."

Policy Mic

“IT WAS RAPE will change the way you think about this most terrible and most everyday of crimes. It's heartrending, brave, and important."

Katha Pollitt The Nation

"If [IT WAS RAPE] starts a conversation, it won't be a quiet one, which is just what Ms. Baumgardner wants."

Susan Dominus The New York Times

"[This] film has been an extremely powerful pedagogical tool for me and I wanted to share my gratitude. The film does, in one hour, what I struggle to do justice to in weeks of teaching!"

Dr. Dusty Johnstone University of Windsor

"Baumgardner continues her streak of powerful, personal, intelligent work with It Was Rape…I applaud Baumgardner's film, and am very grateful for the strength and bravery of all of the women in it for telling their stories."

Feminist Allies

ABOUT FILMMAKER(S)

Jennifer Baumgardner

Jennifer Baumgardner has been working as a feminist in publishing for three decades, beginning in the early 1990s as an intern (and later an editor) at Ms. magazine. As a journalist, she’s written for Glamour, Teen Vogue, Bust, Dissent, Harper’s Bazaar, Harper’s, The Nation, Elle, New York Times, and others. Her books include Manifesta, Grassroots, Look Both Ways, and Abortion & Life and she has directed/produced two feature-length documentaries (It Was Rape and I Had an Abortion). She was writer-in-residence at The New School (2008-12), executive director and publisher of the Feminist Press (2013-7), a co-founder of Soapbox, Inc., and editor in chief of Wellesley College's Women’s Review of Books (2017-2022). Currently, she runs the feminist imprint Dottir Press, edits the print journal LIBER: A Feminist Review, and is the Lakes writer-in-residence at Smith College. (01/24)

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