Vice President Joe Biden has been making admirable statement after admirable statement in 2016, leaving many of us wondering just what he could have been up to for the other 7 years he served under President Obama.

On Tuesday, Biden re-upped his position as cool uncle Joe when he loudly and unequivocally outlined the definition of rape.

When the news first broke of the Stanford rape with the harrowing open letter from his victim making the social media rounds, the vice president issued a heartfelt statement to the anonymous woman that he supported her and that the system had failed her.

During Tuesday’s comments, Biden made it clear to anyone still unsure whether or not the situation of the Stanford rape could have been considered anything else than a violent violation.

“Sex without consent is rape. It is full stop rape. And if you cannot consent because you are unconscious, it is rape! It is rape, period!”

These are lessons our vice president should not have to repeat, but sadly his comments are often rare in many areas of America.

“There is never a cultural justification for dehumanizing a human being. Never, never, never, never, never, never, never!”

Bringing this issue to the forefront in such a strong, non-ambivalent way can do so much to show survivors that they have support and to hopefully show would-be rapists that their actions would not be allowed to happen without repercussion.

Watch.

 

Sydney Robinson is a political writer for the Ring of Fire Network. She has also appeared in political news videos for Ring of Fire. Sydney has a degree in English Literature from the University of West Florida, and has an active interest in politics, social justice, and environmental issues. She would love to hear from you on Twitter @SydneyMkay or via email at srobinson@ringoffireradio.com