Identifying Rape Victims

So Alan Dershowitz thinks that the accuser’s name and background “seem to be” relevant (“A Conspiracy of Silence,” Commentary, April 19). I wonder just how he came to this questionable conclusion--”allegations of possible theft by the accuser” sounds to me like the same old “blame the victim” stance. What is being printed in the papers has absolutely no relevance whatsoever to the facts of the case. The New York Times and other publications have gone so far as to print that she “had a little wild streak.” In ninth grade! If these responsible news organizations are treating rape just like any other crime, why is the victim’s entire life story being printed? This is not a case of First Amendment freedom or “sexism” as opposed to a victim’s right to privacy, it is nothing more than an offensive free-for-all.

DONNA INGRAM

El Cajon