Yasmine Mohammed ياسمين محمد  🦋

Important thread on retribution and justice, and why “believe all women” is a dangerous mantra.https://twitter.com/keikoinboston/status/1042913577668096001 …

I don’t think the idea is to believe all women, full stop. It’s simply a first step. The idea is to believe, then do due diligence. The idea is to change the initial reaction from *not believe* to believe. Why assume she’s guilty of lying? What about her presumption of innocence?

The fallacy here is that there’s only 2 options when presented with an allegation 1. Believe it to be true instantly. 2. Believe it to be a lie instantly. The reality is serious allegations should be afforded serious investigation and it’s the investigation that determines 1 or 2

Yes, you’re right. But the initial reaction/response has been to not believe women or to assume that they’re lying...this campaign is an effort to correct that so that both the accuser and the accused are presumed innocent.

Agree that the experiences of victims when coming forward has fallen below an acceptable standard for too long. Just worry that this new emphasis on ‘absolute and instant belief’ prior to investigation has the potential to influence investigations and jeopardise prosecutions.

I don’t think anyone is suggesting that and even if some are (because of the fact that there is a judicial process) there’s no danger of that happening.

I’ve shared before that I was one (of millions) of women who finally had the courage to tell only to be dismissed as a liar. Case closed. That’s a problem. As a society we need to believe women, and all victims, when they come forward. Then, of course, investigate.