The school is responding pretty much as much as the school can respond and should but what about the community. I think she is right in asking those who care what are you going to do with this anger? To many times we react in shock and then move on. Each time this happens it is our opportunity to collectively make change. But all to often we choose to trap ourselves behind more barriers rather than simultaneously address the real problem. All this does is provide a false sense of security. No amount of fencing or security lighting is going to effect change on a cultural dysfunction.

IMO gang rape comes from a very different place psychologically than those perpetrated by an individual offender and culturally a much easier fix. Over the past couple of decades I've observed a society that has allowed its young men to forget what it means to be a gentlemen and treat women with respect. We've also slacked in teaching our young women in how to differentiate between a boy who is preoccupied with dysfunctionaly trying to prove he's a man and a young man who is secure and not preoccupied with his man hood.

We need to be a community again and parents need to address parents who are slacking on that point. Now that doesn't necessarily mean point fingers. That means that if we're a community we reach out and offer help to a single parent or child who is struggling in school. That is what community is about and the stronger a community the safer it is, that is a fact.

I was so angry when I heard about what happened. 20 people? It's not like they needed to put themselves in danger and save the girl, a simple call to 911 would have sufficed. I wish everyone who walked by and did nothing could get charged with accessory to a crime.

Anyway. Soapbox. Getting off.

This is heart breaking to say the least. A girl's been raped and ignored at that, and yet she's the one saying, "We need to channel this anger in a positive way." The world needs more people like her.

I'll climb on the soapbox with ya, Studio16. I totally agree about charging all those who callously stood/walked by (I can hardly even write those words, so horribly cruel are they) as being an accessory to the crime - are they doing that with any of them? And hypnoticmix, you're right on, too!

20 people.and a 911 def would have been better than not doing anything at all. but this does not surprise me,most people now a days don't give to sh*ts about what happens to other people,as long as it does not effect them in anyway.when it comes to stuff like this stay on the soapbox.

Teensch - IIRC California law doesn't *require* people to report witnessed crimes. There is a law that requires people to report witnessed crimes against children, but it only applies to crimes against children 14 and below.

So while these people are morally, ethically bankrupt for not reporting this absolutely appalling crime, legally they're in the clear.

I have one quick question. What was used to entice this girl out of the dance and into a dark alley?

OOps, two quick questions. Where did the alcohol she drank come from?

They should have immediately gathered every cell phone that wass on the school property. Isn't there a law against filming kiddie porn?

NO is NO. BUT...what was she thinking? She had no broken arm from being forced to drink. One more time...YES! NO is NO but it would seem this girl was either never taught what dangerous behavior is, chose to ignore the warnings or is as dumb as a box of rocks.

YES YES - NO is NO but this girl is partially to blame for being at the wrong place, in the wrong physical and mental state at the wrong time. An animal always knows when their prey is weak of body or mind.

School officials should have their heads rolled for their inability or lack of desire to make the event a memorable one...and not this as the memory.

Uhm anon, I think that was uncalled for. Calling her dumb as rocks is incredibly harsh, this girl didn't ASK to be raped! She's showing great strength by saying that people should turn their anger into something positive, and that is a damn sight more intelligent than tossing the blame about.
Saying she was in the wrong place is wrong too, there would have been many girls at the event.

A positive outcome from this terrible event would be the school being given the funding to tighten security even more on big events, so this sort of unpleasantness would never happen again.

Anon, I don't see you as any different from the 20 or so people who watched this happen. Comments that blame survivors for their own rapes disgust me.

What a horrible story! That poor girl, and so young, to be tortured like that and no-one helped her! sick sick sick.

Anon, how dare you insult and blame the victim?? We women have enough crap to deal with when it comes to violence against women, from police to courts to the general public who think the victims are somehow at fault and "it's no big deal". Shame on you.

I agree with lilkim! Anonymous should take a step back and really think about being younger and wanting to fit in and sometimes making the wrong choices. I mean who hasn't been there? I am sure she never imagined a "friend" from school would have turned on her like that. I remember being 15 and trusting and naive and just wanting to fit in. She may have even had a crush on the boy who invited her to hang out.Somewhere along the line things really got out of hand and not one of those individuals had the morals or character to call for help. Such a scary world we live in today.I pray she will heal and endure and overcome with love and support from her family and the world.

Hmmm... I thought the Good Samaritan law in CA was for anyone who full-on witnessed a crime against anyone of any age and didn't report it...

Anon #6- I think you need to put yourself in the victim's shoes. Anybody can be at the wrong place at the wrong time - that does not make the victim at fault! That's like saying people who get shot by stray bullets at a drive by are partially at fault for being somewhere they could get shot. In essence, you are defending the perpetrators because you think she was at fault for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. That's so horrifying that there are people out there who could possibly find ways to lay the blame on this poor girl.

The vast majority of people know someone who was the victim of rape, whether that person ever comes forth and lets it be known or not. Chances are anon, that someone you know (possibly even care about) was a victim of rape and just never broadcast the news.