TV Appearance of Teen Victims Suggests Rape Stigma Is Fading

Days after being abducted and raped, two Antelope Valley teens went on national television.

As cameras rolled, Tamara Brooks, 16, and Jackie Marris, 17, told of being tied with duct tape and rope, of their drunken captor loading his gun and threatening their lives. They described how they later attacked him, one girl stabbing him in the neck and the other smashing his face with a whiskey bottle. They spoke of watching their captor die in a shootout with sheriff’s deputies.

Critics harpooned the girls’ parents for allowing the NBC “Today” show interview and being dazzled by a chance at celebrity rather than focusing on the recovery of their children. But experts say the TV appearance points to a shift in how people view the victims of sexual assault.

The stigma, they say, is not what it used to be. The girls’ appearance marks a new attitude of empowerment, the sense that they have no cause for shame.

“Twenty years ago, no one talked about rape,” said Marie Lena, president of People Against Rape. “We’ve gone from ‘Don’t talk’ to ‘Stand up and talk.’ ”

In general, people are more open to talking about sex, said clinical sexologist Ava Cadell, who credits President Clinton with ushering the topic of oral sex into America’s living room.

This loosening up, she said, also included thornier topics such as sexual assault. “In my work with rape victims, it’s no longer as taboo as it was. Women don’t have the guilt and shame that they did. And people are not pointing fingers saying, ‘It’s your fault.’ ”

This year’s highly publicized accusations against priests may also be contributing to an environment in which it is easier for victims to reveal their experience, said Tamara Kreinin, president of the Sexuality Information and Education Council.

“When there are a series of cases, people are more comfortable talking and feeling supported by society,” Kreinin said. “When something is talked about a lot, a social norm of support is created.”

In the past, most women did not report being raped, experts said. They wouldn’t tell family members or police because they felt the crime cast doubt on their integrity and intentions. Even 20 years ago, many people still viewed rape victims as women whose behavior or attire elicited sexual assault.

Today, rape is seen as a crime “not of passion but of anger, control and domination,” Lena said. The antidote is to restore a sense of safety, power and trust. Over the years, the notion that speaking out is both empowering and therapeutic has gained momentum.

Not surprisingly, TV news and talk shows are happy to comply. Getting exclusive interviews from victims has become big business. Bookers for TV shows often tell victims they will feel better.

Those involved with treatment of rape victims disagree. “Talking in a therapy relationship is different than being on national television,” said Gail Abarbanel, director of the Rape Treatment Center at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center.

After the girls’ rescue, The Times followed its longtime practice of not naming sexual assault victims without their permission. The practice, established to protect victims’ privacy, was waived after Tamara and Jackie agreed to tell their story on television.

In explaining why she agreed to the TV interview, Tamara Brooks said , “It wasn’t like I was pressured one way or the other. It was up to me. My parents said whatever I felt comfortable doing, they were behind.

“Me and Jackie want to get the message across to everybody to never give up on anything,” she said. “If you ever give up, you’ve lost. Whatever obstacles you have, you’ve got to fight your way through it.”

Tamara was also clear that she and Jackie wanted to keep some of their privacy. “It’s just retelling the story and it’s not hard to talk about it, but I let everyone know there are certain things I will not talk about and I think everybody knows what I’m talking about.”

Tamara’s father, Sammie Brooks, said he believed the public spotlight would help his daughter recover.

“I think she’s having fun with the publicity,” said Brooks, a teacher at Antelope Valley College. “People wanting to see her and have her on TV and magazines is good healing for her.”

Brooks, who is separated from Tamara’s mother, said he hasn’t seen his daughter since he picked her up after the rescue last Thursday. Since then, his daughter has been “on tour,” he said. “It gives her something to draw on so the horror of the experience will be balanced.”

Billy Pricer, a therapist working with the girls and their families, said the teens “felt they needed to get their story out to help other young girls.”

“It’s very therapeutic,” Pricer said. “They have a good attitude--you can either get better or get bitter. And, they chose to get better.”

Jackie and Tamara have been inundated by interview requests for the past week. Hollywood producers wanted to buy the rights to their story. Three network morning news shows wooed them.

At first, the girls decided to go on all the morning shows, but said they were talked out of it by NBC staffers after they agreed to appear with Katie Couric on the “Today” show. (Tamara said she thought Couric was “really cool and sweet.”)

Couric’s exclusive interview aired Monday. NBC officials have since disclosed that the show’s booker bought Jackie an $80 pair of pants, a violation of NBC’s standards. The purchase was made after the girls agreed to appear, said Allison Gollust, spokeswoman for the “Today” show. “The booker felt bad for someone going through such an emotional time,” she said.

During the interview, which was taped in Lancaster, Tamara and Jackie finished each other’s sentences. They exchanged knowing glances. They reached out for each other’s hands.

They told Couric about their abduction, their struggle with their captor and their rescue. But there was one word they never uttered: Rape. Nor did Couric.

NBC spokeswoman Gollust said there were no restrictions set for the interview. “We believe our questioning of them was appropriate given the circumstances,” she said.

The closest that Couric got to asking about rape was when she inquired: “Did he hurt you in any way?”

Tamara quickly shut down the question, saying: “Yes, but that’s something we won’t discuss.”

Several experts felt the omission was telling.

“What’s significant is they’re not talking about the one part of the crime that no one wants to talk about,” Abarbanel said.

Rape remains an underreported crime, she said. One in six women is the victim of a rape or attempted rape, Abarbanel said. Of those, 16% are reported to police, she estimated. The statistics, she said, indicate the stigma many victims still attach to the crime. “Always behind silence is a sense of shame.”

The teens’ appearance on national television shows progress, said Nancy Raine, author of “After Silence: Rape and My Journey Back.” “In an ideal world, all [rape] survivors would love it if this was a crime like all other crimes, where if it came up that you’d been raped, it would not plunge the listener into silence and discomfort.”

Others said the TV interview is evidence that victims were becoming emboldened. “Increasingly, women are unwilling to be silent victims,” said Linden Gross, author of “Surviving a Stalker.”

Today, Tamara Brooks said she is comfortable with her new fame. “It’s fine. I guess you could say I’m like a celebrity.”

Times staff writer Michael Krikorian contributed to this report.