In this week’s episode of HJ Talks About Abuse, Kathleen and Feleena discuss ‘Prima Facie’ – a highly acclaimed one woman play starring Jodie Comer. Comer plays a criminal defence barrister who defends accused rapists and finds herself a victim of rape by a male colleague.
The play was taped for audiences and has enjoyed limited showings at local cinemas. It is moving to Broadway soon.
The abuse team discuss the issue of consent and how victims are often asked in court how much they were drinking and whether they had sex with the perpetrator previously. This leads to a discussion of society’s understanding of consent and how organisations such as the Schools Consent project, and the FA which recently announced mandatory consent training, are working to educate around the issue of consent.
They discuss specialist sexual assault courts that exist in other jurisdictions and whether such courts should be introduced in the UK. This leads them to consider the Victims Code which grants various rights to victims, as well as the Victims Bill of Rights which is currently before Parliament. The Victims Bill of Rights as currently proposed does not include any liability if a victim’s rights under the code are not upheld. They also discuss whether not attaching any liability for failing to adhere to the Victims Code creates a toothless system for victims and survivors.