The Secret History of the Rape Kit: A True Crime Story by Pagan Kennedy

 

First Line: One night in September 2018, I dreamed that I was standing in a courtroom, blinking in the bright lights, with microphones poking up all around me.

In 1972, Martha "Marty" Goddard volunteered at a crisis hotline in Chicago, counseling girls who had been molested by their fathers, their teachers, their uncles. It didn't take long for Marty to want an answer to a very important question: Why were so many sexual predators getting away with these crimes? By the end of the decade, she had launched a campaign pushing hospitals and police departments to collect evidence of sexual assault and to treat survivors with dignity. She designed a new kind of forensics tool-- the rape kit-- and once adopted by the Chicago Police Department, the use of this tool soon spread to New York City and beyond.

But even as Marty fought for women's rights, she allowed a man to take credit for her work, and when journalist Pagan Kennedy went looking for this pioneer, she discovered that even Marty's closest friends had lost track of her. While following clues to find out what happened to Marty, Kennedy also learned more about the problematic history of American forensics.

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When I read the synopsis of The Secret History of the Rape Kit, I knew I had to read it. Call me more than a little disgruntled when I learn of all the work done by women that men have stolen the credit for.

Martha "Marty" Goddard's work is outstanding because she pushed it through the most corrupt police department in America at the time: the Chicago Police Department. This woman did not like public speaking and often found someone else to do it for her, but when she had to, she would. That is how dedicated she was to her project. It's hard for me to believe that Goddard sank almost without a trace. How can someone do something so important and then disappear? I congratulate Kennedy for bringing Goddard back into the spotlight where she belongs.

The history the author provides is fascinating. I'll share a couple of examples. Would it surprise you to learn that Hugh Hefner and Playboy played a very important part in getting Goddard's rape kits accepted? They did. Would it also surprise you to learn that the infrastructure we use every day is constantly feeding us messages about who is important and who is not? It does. The designer of the bridges and underpasses leading into Long Island purposely had them built with low clearances so buses couldn't get through. You see, he didn't want poor people to have easy access to the area.

Kennedy shows us how the rape kits and forensics have changed over time and shares her own experience of sexual assault. While I didn't really find the author's personal experience all that necessary to the book as a whole, it does shed light on a survivor's thoughts and feelings.

The Secret History of the Rape Kit is a valuable addition to not only the history of forensics but women's history as well.

The Secret History of the Rape Kit: A True Crime Story by Pagan Kennedy

eISBN: 9780593314722

Vintage Books © 2025

eBook, 320 pages

Non-Fiction

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased from Amazon.