ABSTRACT
Williams examines the Tawana Brawley case and draws out the implications of this case with respect to race, gender, and agency. In the fall of 1987 in upstate New York, a black teenager, Tawana Brawley, was found in a dazed and abused condition lying in a vacant lot. When questioned by authorities, she indicated that six white men had kidnapped and raped her. Sensationalized by the press, the case galvanized and polarized public opinion. After a lengthy investigation punctuated by charges of a racially motivated cover-up, prosecutors concluded that Brawley had inflicted the injuries on herself and fabricated her accusations. No one was indicted in the case.
