Patty Hearst, By Patricia Campbell Hearst

These two reporters were very influential in taking a local crime and sending it nationwide. New York had half a dozen newspapers that felt intentionally that the case was not news worthy. The only news worth reporting was political and economic news. The penny papers however had not problem and was all over it like white on rice. The bigger newspaper did come around when they say the revenue that the penny papers were getting and how much. The larger papers finally realized that they would not be able to compete with the penny papers unless they began to cover this murder. The eventually wrote it off on public interest.

Lucky by Alice Sebold’s is a memoir in which she speaks about her traumatic experience that she went through during her freshman year at Syracuse University in New York. Alice was beaten and raped one night when she was walking alone back to her dorm. A black male grabbed her from behind with a knife and told her that he would kill her if she screamed. The black male took Alice into a tunnel where he beat her up and forced her to perform oral sex on him. Alice was still a virgin prior to the rape. After the black male raped Alice, he showed feelings of remorse, he helped Alice put her clothes back on. Alice lied and told him that it was okay and that she forgave him. Alice reports the incident to the police and the officer tells Alice that she should consider herself lucky because a girl had been killed in the same place where she was raped. The rape took a toll on Alice because she seemed to pretend like it was okay when it was not. She started seeing everything differently, every black male she came across she would be reminded of her rapist. Alice also experienced trouble in relationships with men because she did not consider herself to be worthy of any good guy because no guy would want her since she was a rape victim. Alice expressed anger towards her rapist when she runs into him again one afternoon and he approaches her and says that she looked familiar. Alice speaks about wanting to kill her rapist. Alice’s rapist is taken into custody and they have a

Amanda Knox is an American student who was studying abroad in Italy when was accused and convicted of murdering her roommate, Meredith Kercher, and was found innocent of the crimes after serving four years in an Italian prison. The scrutiny surrounding this case is one of media influence and how it set her fate. Knox was not able to get a fair trial in Italy because of the negative image the media painted of her. With no concrete evidence, people believed she was guilty because of the horrible and twisted opinions of her in the media.

At some point in their life, every person has been told to “walk in somebody else’s shoes” because they need to be aware of the struggles that other people face, but it is often tough for people to understand things outside of the scope of their own practical knowledge. In her memoir, Lucky, Alice Sebold suffers from this same problem. Throughout the course of her narrative, Sebold thinks of her experience as something that is accessible to be understood by outsiders; in addition to this, Sebold paints her reactions and experiences as a model that she can apply to other victims of sexual assault. Even though Sebold’s story is one of strength in the face of horrible occurrences, her lack of acknowledgement in regards the ways in which other people’s consciousness and coping mechanisms differ from her own makes it far more difficult to sympathize with her than it should be considering the content of her memoir. Evidence of her closed world understanding can be seen from the beginning of the memoir, when she reports her sexual assault to the police (Sebold, 3), later in the narrative, when other people react to her experiences and related feelings (Sebold 146), and finally, and perhaps most significantly, when her close friend Lila undergoes a sexual assault (Sebold 220).

Like Michelle Knight who had a horrible childhood, “In school, Knight was teased incessantly, but life at home was worse: A male family member started molesting her when she was 5 years old, and the abuse escalated over the years from a couple of times a week to almost daily.” (Jones par. 22) and was kidnapped at twenty-one years old. Stolen from a horrible life to be put in a worse one. Taken for eleven years and found; she now helps others who went through same situations. “Elaine Cagle, seen on a video chat, shared her story of traumatic abuse with Knight, who is reaching out to fellow survivors, hoping to help them find strategies for rebuilding their lives.” (Jones) Knight is like those who overcame their bad pasts and are better than the people who hurt them. And instead of hurting others they build them up to be happy and live a life of happiness. Ones many never expect to have.

Kate the Great by Meg Cabot, teaches you to know that only true friends will always be by your side no matter what.

Snowden, Lonnie R, Barriers to Effective Mental Health Services for African Americans, Vol. 3, Issue 4, 181-187 (Dec. 2001). Social Services and Welfare, Psychology

Because I am not certain what career path I intend to pursue, it was difficult to determine an appropriate person for my informational interview. However, following the advice at Quintessential Careers, I focused on my possible career choices (Quintessential Careers, Unk.). What I found was that I was likely to be involved in some type of work involving domestic violence, though I am still uncertain of the nature of that work. As a result, I decide to interview Sarah Buel. Sarah Buel is a noted attorney in the field of domestic violence. Currently a Clinical Professor and Founding Director of the Diane Halle Center for Family Justice at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, Buel was one of the names that came up most frequently as I was looking into the field of domestic violence (Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, 2012).

Throughout our lives we have heard how women throughout history strived to become the best. We have heard stories about women going against society to gain equal rights and we have read about woman with extraordinary character that pursued the history of this world. One of these women is Abigail Adams, the only woman so far to be both wife and mother of a president. Sadly, however, “Abigail Adams” by Janet Whitney is far from being a biography of her life.

As Alice was going through major hell during the rape and even after the rape, it seemed as it was not taken seriously by others. Alice describes her pain, fears, and many problems that came along the way when it came for fighting for herself and the after effect of the rape. Being a rape victim was not easy, and Alice showed many signals that she needed more than just comfort, but sadly many of them failed to provide that for her.

Mary Surratt was sentenced to death by hanging for aiding in the president's assassins. She helped John Wilkes Booth and his associates kill president Lincoln and attempt to kill vice president Seward. I think Mary Surratt was guilty of aiding the president's assassins and attempting to help kidnap the president and i will tell you why.

Mary Surratt only knew of the kidnapping, which should have given her a less harsh sentence then death. But Mary was only put to death because many people just wanted justice. Mary knew that Booth, (the man who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln), was going to try and kidnap the president because Booth found out that President Lincoln was going to watch a play in a theater close by, and was having a plan ready to try to kidnap the President of the United States (source two). This explains that she is only guilty for knowing about the kidnapping which is why she only should have been put in prison. Their was also

The reason for the kidnapping was for the simple reason that Patricia Hearst was part of a wealthy, powerful family that would ensure the group attention from the press, which is exactly what occurred. Hearst’s kidnapping made headlines across the country. Local police and FBI searched for her, two days after the kidnapping on February 6, 1974 a letter was left at a radio station signed by the SLA. It was a “warrant for the arrest of Patricia Campbell Hearst” along with her credit card and a warning that anyone who interferes

A trait that stands out in the book is the symptom of bodily memories. In Melinda’s case, during a frog dissection in her science class, she remembers the opening up and even says, “She doesn’t say a word. She is already dead. A scream starts in my gut – I can feel the cut, smell the dirt, feel the leaves in my hair.” (81). One of the other symptoms that Melinda has is self-harm. The first time that this is shown in the book, Melinda says this, “I open up a paper clip and scratch it across the inside of my left wrist. Pitiful. If a suicide attempt is a cry for help, then what is this? A whimper, a peep?” (87). Melinda also has a hard time talking to her parents about the rape to which she says, “How can I talk to them about that night? How can I start?” (72). Some victims recover from such a traumatic experience, while others don’t and live a lifetime of depression and must undergo intense therapy. In Melinda’s case, she finds redemption by talking to her parents and the guidance counselor, and putting her faith into her teachers, friends, and her art project at school. Because rape can affect anybody anywhere, everyone should be aware of the circumstances, and how to deal with it.

Although a light read, her experience is heart-breaking as she is abused at home, institutionalized, and instead of being treated for her depression, doctor’s attempt to “feminize” her with eye shadow and lipstick. She is the type of advocate that makes noise in a silence because she tells a tale that would otherwise be unknown.