Sanders: 1972 rape essay was ‘dumb attempt’ at satire

by Elliot Smilowitz - 05/28/15 10:26 PM ET

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) sought to distance himself Thursday from an essay he wrote in the 1970s that discusses rape fantasies.

Michael Briggs, a spokesman for the 2016 White House contender’s campaign, called the essay a “dumb attempt at dark satire in an alternative publication,” according to CNN.

Briggs added that the writing “in no way reflects his views or record on women,” saying it “was intended to attack gender stereotypes of the ’70s.”

{mosads}The essay, published by the Vermont Freeman in 1972, discussed violent sexual fantasies.

In it, Sanders wrote that a man’s “typical fantasy” is “a woman tied up, a woman abused,” and that a woman “fantasizes being raped by 3 men simultaneously.”

Do you know why the newspapers with articles like ‘Girl, 12, raped by 14 men’ sell so well? To what in us are they appealing?” the essay asks.

Briggs’s statements to CNN seemed to indicate Sanders’s campaign expected the candidate’s history to be brought into public light.

“When Bernie got into this race, he understood that there would be efforts to distracts voters and the press from the real issues confronting the nation today,” Briggs said.

Tags Bernie Sanders