Author Mary Karr’s response to her assaulter is so incredibly empowering

Most of us are familiar with Mary Karr for her thought-provoking memoirs and books of poetry, such as Cherry and Abacus.

And now she’s now written a particularly poignant essay titled “The Crotchgrabber” in The New Yorker, about a very personal and uncomfortable subject: The time she was assaulted by a stranger in broad daylight.

“[A]n approaching guy chatting equably with a tall friend dodged at me to grab my crotch. I don’t mean brushed by it maybe accidentally; I mean he grabbed between my legs with a meaty claw, big as a waffle iron.”

As if that’s not offensive enough, Karr notes that her attacker used the “c-word” before passing onward with his friend. Unsurprisingly, Karr didn’t know what to make of the attack, and even wondered if she’d somehow provoked this guy.

She summoned the courage to chase after him, shouting “Not today! Not this bitch! “You picked the wrong woman to fuck with today!”

She called 911 and he police arrested the guy, though he wasn’t charged in the end. It’s horrifying to think that so many sexual assault cases don’t result in formal punishment, leaving an abundance of hurt — as well as justice unserved.

Statistics demonstrate that 1 in 5 women will be sexually assaulted, a horrifying reality which will hopefully be crushed with the inclusion of more rigorous sexual education in schools.

Karr notes in her essay that “nearly twenty per cent of women have been raped in the U.S.” It’s a problem all over the world, one that desperately requires change.

The behavior of this man was and is 100% unacceptable, we salute Mary Karr for raising awareness with such strength and conviction. She is not a woman to be messed with, and neither is ANY OTHER WOMAN.