With Sprigs, Brannavan Gnanalingam delivers a great New Zealand novel, writes Uther Dean. Since 2011 Brannavan Gnanalingam has pumped out Major Work after Major Work. Every two years brought another book: Getting Under Sail; You Should Have Come Here When You Were Not Here; Credit in the Straight World; A Briefcase, Two Pies and a … Read more
‘I finished This is Pleasure at about 4am on a Sunday. I hadn’t been able to sleep – I’d had an uncomfortable interaction with a powerful person, and it was keeping me awake …’. Pip Adam on a book that challenged and changed her. From where I’m typing this, I can see a copy of … Read more
A woman who went on a Tinder date with the man who murdered Grace Millane tells her story, and issues a warning to other women to trust their instincts when something doesn’t feel right. First published on Newshub.co.nz I went on a date with Grace Millane’s killer while her body lay in his apartment. Yes, … Read more
Emily Writes watches Netflix’s new US-set series Unbelievable and can’t help be reminded of events back home. I was asked to review Netflix’s new mini-series Unbelievable more than a month ago. After watching the screener over the course of a few nights, it sat on my to-do list for weeks. I would sit down to … Read more
Roll Red Roll is a brutal, painfully illuminating documentary on the Steubenville High School rape case, a shocking crime that made headlines worldwide. Emily Writes reviews. This review discusses rape and sexual violence August 11, 2012: two teenage boys rape an unconscious teenage girl as two of their peers watch and take photos on their … Read more
What does it say about our sporting bodies that we’d even consider letting those who have admitted sexual assault compete under our banner, writes Casey Lucas. “A promising young athlete…” It’s startling how a seemingly innocent phrase can conjure cold dread in the stomach before your eyes even reach the end of the sentence. “You … Read more
Foxton author Anne Hunt backgrounds the legal challenges she faced when she published her book about a woman who accused her therapist of rape. Content warning: suicidal ideation and rape My 2003 book Broken Silence was published too long ago to capture a readership mesmerised by the complexities of the #MeToo movement. It documented the … Read more
Alex Casey, Leonie Hayden and Michèle A’Court tackle the past month in women, news and popular culture, with thanks to our friends at The Women’s Bookshop. It began with a Gillette razor and it ended with a whole week of New Zealand rape culture under a microscope. January was a rough one for sure, so join … Read more
Someone Emily Writes knew, or thought she knew, raped a woman in a horrific attack. She asks why she didn’t see the monster within. Someone I knew from high school killed someone many years back. When I was asked what he’d been like in high school I said there had been something “off” about him. … Read more
On Monday night, Joseph Parker, one of a group of young men investigated relating to alleged sexual offences, broke his silence, talking to Newshub five years after The Roast Busters scandal exploded. Many of his survivors were watching. Alex Casey sat down with one of them this week in her Auckland home. Appalled by Parker’s … Read more
When cricketer Scott Kuggeleijn took to the pitch for the Black Caps last Friday there was no mention of his two trials for raping a woman in 2016, for which he was ultimately found not guilty. Asks Jessie Dennis, is silence really the best NZ Cricket can do? Content warning: details of sexual violence. On … Read more
A new survey of 1,025 New Zealand women found that 82% had experienced either sexual violence or harassment. Compelling evidence – but will men ever believe it, asks Emily Writes. Content warning: This column describes instances of rape, sexual assault and sexual harassment. I read in resigned horror about Bauer Media’s survey of sexual violence against … Read more
The rape and murder of Melbourne woman Eurydice Dixon has reignited the conversation about women’s role in protecting themselves from stranger danger. Criminologist Bianca Fileborn explains the problem with ‘stay safe’ advice. This week, a man allegedly raped and murdered a young woman – emerging comedian Eurydice Dixon – as she walked home from a … Read more
Dating apps have made meeting people to date and have sex with simpler than ever, but with their ease of use comes risks. Is it time we had a #MeToo conversation about Tinder? PLEASE NOTE: this article includes graphic descriptions of sexual assault. When the #metoo social movement emerged from the Harvey Weinstein fallout, I … Read more
Whenever the media covers a high profile case of sexual assault or sexual harassment, there’s a chorus saying the survivor should have gone to the police or their parents. The latest example: the sexual assault allegations in relation to last month’s Labour Party youth camp. Writing anonymously, a survivor explains why such comments are so … Read more
Alex Casey watches Sunday night drama Liar, a British thriller that calls one woman’s account of sexual assault into serious question. Without sounding too morbid, TVNZ couldn’t have planned the timing of sexual assault drama Liar any better. In a post-Weinstein world where stories of sexual assault and harassment have been dragged under the bright … Read more
The #metoo campaign to publicise the extent of sexual assault and harassment has taken social media by storm. But it’s not anything new, writes Lucy Kelly. For most girls, sharing stories of sexual abuse is part of growing up. So what are the stories that boys tell themselves? Content warning: this article contains discussion of … Read more
They’re not lurking in bushes. We date them, we love them, we coddle them. The Spinoff columnist Felix Desmarais explores why, in a country that doesn’t teach consent, rape culture thrives. Some names have been changed. Content warning: This post discusses sexual violence and harassment. It may be upsetting to survivors. Please take care. I started … Read more
Yesterday we published an account of how a group of teenage circus performers were subject to crude sexual remarks prior to the first Lions test in Auckland. The story prompted a huge reaction, including this response from Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner, Dr Jackie Blue. Kiwi men, we need to have a talk. Kiwi women are … Read more
An interview with the super-sharp, furious, funny and startlingly creative Eleanor Bishop, whose acclaimed play about campus rape, Jane Doe, is on for two weeks in Auckland. When she was aged 20, Eleanor Bishop says she was struck by three things. One, she was surrounded by sexual harassment. Two, there was, thank god, feminism. And … Read more
How do we teach our children that their body is their body when there are times we just need them to comply with us so that we can keep their body safe? Laura Borrowdale finds there’s no easy answer – but it’s a discussion we need to have. One of my mother’s key pieces of … Read more
What do rape survivors think about the New Zealand justice system? How do they think we should address victim blaming and Kiwi rape culture? In a video collaboration between Frame News, Wrestler and The Spinoff, launched today to mark Rape Awareness Week, seven rape survivors talk candidly about their experiences. Here Frame News’ Kim Vinnell … Read more
Today’s protest at Parliament, organised by young Wellington women in response to the Wellington College scandal, was a protest against rape culture and in support of sexual consent education in schools. Spinoff Parents editor Emily Writes went along, and left feeling inspired and hopeful. Content warning: This post discusses sexual violence and harassment. It may … Read more
The attitudes expressed by a group of Wellington College schoolboys are depressing and infuriating – but not surprising, says sexual assault campaigner and 17-year-old Wellingtonian Eva McGauley. “Fuck women. Not even drunk, pass her out then fuck her job done.” “If you don’t take advantage of a drunk girl then you’re not a true WC … Read more
Regardless of today’s verdict, the assumptions made and line of questioning pursued by Kuggeleijn’s lawyer Philip Morgan over the course of two trials were extremely troubling, writes Madeleine Chapman. A jury of six men and six women has found Scott Kuggeleijn not guilty of raping a woman in May 2015. Many have expressed relief at … Read more
Eva McGauley is a 17 year old with terminal cancer who has decided to use whatever time she has left to support young victims of sexual violence. She explains why. Please note: this article contains discussion of sexual violence in New Zealand My name is Eva McGauley and I’m 17 years old. I grew … Read more
Its ostensible subject was rugby’s recent sex scandals, but yesterday’s op-ed by Northland Age editor Peter Jackson seemed more concerned with criticising the sexual behaviour of Warriena Wright, the New Zealander whose death led to Gable Tostee facing murder charges in a Brisbane court. An appalled Kristina Hard responds. Yesterday nzherald.co.nz republished a vitriolic screed … Read more
All week this week we revisit the Mervyn Thompson Affair – the strange, powerful 1984 incident when six women abducted an Auckland university lecturer, chained him to a tree in Western Springs, burnt his flesh with lit cigarettes, threatened to castrate him, and labelled him a rapist. Today: an essay by Thompson’s friend, novelist Stephanie Johnson. Trigger warning: … Read more
This week we revisit the Mervyn Thompson Affair – the strange, powerful and polarising 1984 incident in which six unknown women abducted an Auckland University lecturer, chained him to a tree in Western Springs, burnt his flesh with cigarettes, threatened to castrate him, and labelled him a rapist. Today, Steve Braunias introduces an extract from Thompson’s memoirs. Trigger … Read more