#MeToo founder Tarana Burke spoke to “Full Frontal” host Samantha Bee about the links between sexual violence and police brutality in a clip shared on Wednesday.
“After the use of excessive force, sexual violence is the second most reported type of police misconduct,” Bee told viewers. “And Black women and Black LGBTQ people are disproportionately targeted.”
Insisting sexual violence must also be included in the Black Lives Matter conversation, Burke shared of speaking out about both, “I’ve gotten this pushback that says, ‘You’re supposed to be #MeToo, why are you over here talking about Black Lives Matter?’ And, you know, outside of my Black life mattering, there is a very direct connection between police brutality and sexual violence.”
Burke also discussed the case where two former New York Police Department officers, Eddie Martins and Richard Hall, raped 18-year-old Anna Chambers while she was in custody.
Martins and Hall are serving no jail time and were sentenced to just five years of probation, even though they pleaded guilty to 11 charges.
Burke also discussed Oluwatoyin “Toyin” Salau, a 19-year-old Black Lives Matter activist who was recently murdered and sexually assaulted. Florida man Aaron Glee has been charged.
“People have to pay attention to sexual violence and the crisis of sexual violence because it really permeates every part of our culture, every part of our lives,” Burke said.
“So, times may change, but the way we hate women remains constant,” Bee added.
