It’s Hard to Believe, But It Happened to Real People

Real women share their stories of injustice and resilience.

Kaitlyn Dever in Unbelievable. Credit: Netflix

If you think women’s lives would change if they had sexual freedom, you need to rethink. Listen to some real stories of American women who are considered sexually free, and you’ll change your mind.

Unbelievable and American Nightmare are short series that focus on the same issue: real violent incidents that actually happened.

“She said she was raped with a knife’s tip, an eighteen-year-old girl. Then she said it was a lie. This story begins from there.”

These are the first few lines of a Marshal Project article. This organization aims to raise awareness about the American justice system. The story of Unbelievable is based on this article. The article and the series have won many awards.

Marie — Credit: Netflix

When Marie, an eighteen-year-old, told what happened to her, the police didn’t believe her. There was no evidence of rape in her room. Marie’s words were the only proof of the crime.

The police questioned her again and again. Marie gave confusing answers. No one understood her state of mind, a mix of confusion, shock, fear, and shame. Her foster parents and friends didn’t believe her.

At one point, Marie thought she might have a problem. She signed a confession saying she lied. The police didn’t stop there. They dragged her to court, fined her $500, and put her under surveillance.

A few years later, another rape happened in a place unrelated to Marie’s life. The investigating female officer and other officers faced the same situation. There was no evidence.

Detective Stacy Galbraith. Sergeant Edna Hendershot — Credit: screenrant

Detective Stacy Galbraith. Sergeant Edna Hendershot. These female officers dug a little and found the rapist. The rapist got 175 years in prison. Many women were affected. Marie was one of them, and she also got justice.

How Unbelievable series was made can be a lesson for those who make movies in Tamil. If such a story is written in Tamil, it will fill the viewer’s mind with negative thoughts like, “A woman is never safe anywhere,” or “Being born a woman is a sin.” Both these series are about women who were raped. They didn’t show gruesome or scary scenes. Yet, it hurts to watch. They also planted a positive thought at the end.

Unbelievable series goes in a Triller style, revealing truths bit by bit. As truths unfold layer by layer, they reach the depths of our hearts. The series asks us if we believed Marie when she told us what happened to her. The way scenes are set up without us believing her and Marie’s acting skills are thousands of reasons. The question is, did you think her words or not? Until evidence shows Marie is lying, how many of us thought there was no reason not to believe her? This question remains even after reading this and watching the series.

The special thing about this series is that it gives hope when a series that talks about feelings so subtly ends. The main reason is the two female police officers who investigated the case. How to start an investigation without any evidence?

Marie’s contradictory words and body language made the male police officers think she was lying. This happened in 2008. We don’t know what happened in between. The next incident was recorded in 2011.

Detective Stacy Galbraith’s team found no fingerprints or DNA. Stacy refuses to believe that a victim should be believed just because she’s a victim. Isn’t doubting a victim part of a police officer’s job?

“We must listen to the victim carefully and investigate to confirm or deny it,” is Stacy’s way. Victims may hide or twist the truth, and Stacy doubts even the woman who complains of being a victim.

The investigation reveals that the woman is telling the truth. “He must have done this many times before,” says the victim’s statement. The place where the incident happened is clean, with no fingerprints. The victim’s question about whether we can believe her gets an answer. A house should have some fingerprints of a few people. He believes it’s possible to erase evidence and escape because of this practice.

Will the case move forward if it is only about unity? The crimes happened in two different police jurisdictions. So, the question arises: Is the criminal someone who commits crimes far from police jurisdictions? Information is not usually shared between police jurisdictions to keep the investigation confidential. Knowing this practice, some doubt if the police department or military will do this. This angle of investigation catches a few more clues. The criminal is caught.

Their official friendship changes the cliché that a woman’s enemy is another woman. In the arrest scene, Stacy, who pushes young Edna to get credit, hits the last nail on the stereotype. In the American Nightmare series, a female officer proves that Dennis’s story is true after catching the criminal.

[embed]American Nightmare | Official Trailer | Netflix — Credit: Netflix / YouTube

The American Nightmare series is a documentary series where they themselves narrate the actual incident. The lover complained that his lover was taken away from the house they stayed in. When investigating, the lover returned home. When Dennis gave his statement that he was taken away and raped, the police officers didn’t believe him. The police department filed a case against Dennis’s lover.

Later, in another rape case, the criminal’s belongings were seized as evidence. Seeing the white hair among them, the female officer didn’t ignore it. Thinking that some woman must have been affected somewhere, she sent the hair for DNA testing. The hair belonged to Dennis, who was taken away. The female officer’s proof confirmed that Dennis was telling the truth.

Both criminals had similarities. Both treated women softly despite being violent. They gave some advice to a few women on how to be safe. They committed the crime gently, erased the evidence, and escaped. They didn’t physically hurt much. But the wounds that give unbearable pain don’t need to be visible to the eyes. Both criminals and the male police officers who investigated the incidents didn’t understand this.

There’s no need for police officers to understand women’s feelings. As long as they continue their investigation honestly until solid evidence shows otherwise, that’s enough. If the police department had investigated Dennis’s lover instead of doubting Dennis, they might have caught the criminal. The lover’s phone was switched off when Dennis was taken away. It helped the lover escape and caused Dennis to be raped again. The criminal confessed that he could continue this in the annual report because no action was taken on Marie’s complaint.

[embed]Unbelievable | Official Trailer | Netflix — Credit: Netflix / YouTube

The female officers understood the pain of women, but the solution didn’t come from that. They did their duty as police officers: They found the criminal, stopped him in court, and prevented further crimes.

Every time such incidents happen here, voices rise saying, “Cut off the manhood,” “Hang them,” “Shoot them in the head.” Until these are considered individual crimes, there will be no solution. The only way is to create awareness and change society’s perspective. Women are second-class citizens everywhere in the world. These series say that their words don’t easily get attention. Are we ready to change that?

Thanks to Kokila