Rape Jokes Aren't Funny: Advocates Rally to Demand Commissioner Wiener's Resignation

"Have you heard about the fraulein [woman] who came over from Germany? She was walking in the park and eleven men jumped on her and were raping here and the fraulein said 'nein, nein' and so two got off."

Hahaha ... oh wait. That's not funny. At all. But apparently New Mexico's Bernalillo County Commissioner Michael Wiener thinks rape jokes are hilarious. In an investigative report into Commissioner Wiener's behavior -- launched in response to a complaint of sexual harassment by a County Commission employee -- County Clerk Maggie Toulouse Oliver testified that he told a joke along these lines at a meeting (despite the attempt of one of his colleagues to cut him off).

In response to this and other incidents, a group of concerned New Mexico individuals have started a Change.org petition under the name "Women Against Workplace Discrimination," calling for Wiener's resignation. The County Commission meets today, and a "Rape's No Joke" rally will take place at 4:30 MST outside their offices. "Our message today is that Rape is No Joke," stated Neri Holguin, one of the organizers. "Bernalillo County Commissioner Weiner doesn't get it. In New Mexico, 1 in 4 females will experience rape or attempted rape in their lifetime. These are harrowing numbers and there's nothing funny about it."

This isn't the first time Wiener's rapey sense of humor has gotten him in trouble. In March, civil rights advocates and members of the local Democratic Party staged an event demanding he resign from the County Commission for forwarding a joke about African-Americans having sex in prison. The no-so-funny email was denounced as racist and homophobic, painting all African-Americans as criminals, and making light of prison rape. New Mexico Democrats also called upon Republican Gov. Susan Martinez to return Wiener's campaign contributions and herself demand his resignation. Today's rally is cohosted by NM Democrats, AFL-CIO New Mexico, New Mexico Asian Family Center, and Justice League PAC (and the coalition continues to grow).

Other inappropriate remarks reported in the independent sexual harassment investigation included Wiener telling a female colleague regarding a policy decision, "I don't care what position we take, as long as doggy style is included." Unfortunately, while it's clear that Wiener had made numerous inappropriate remarks, it was found not to reach the standard of sexual harassment -- leaving critics asking, how long will he get away with this?

"Because of his role as an elected official, I feel like he of all people should be held to a higher standard," complained Lissa Knudson, another organizer of today's rally. "He has yet to really show any remorse or empathy." Knudson also reports that Wiener insists that when he made the fraulein joke, he didn't use the word "rape," but as she points out, even without using the word "there's nothing else that could be." The joke hinges on how "funny" it is that she's screaming "no, no!" and continues to be gang-raped by nine men, instead of eleven.

Support Women Against Workplace Discrimination in saying: Enough is enough. Rape is not funny. Sexual harassment doesn't belong in the workplace, especially that of an elected official. Advocates plan to present the petition signatures at today's rally, so please sign now to tell the County Commission to demand Wiener's immediate resignation for his reprehensible comments.