Article content continued

At another point, he said, “There are many misguided conceptions of what constitutes a ‘real’ rape or how a ‘real’ victim of sexual violence should behave (i.e. scream, struggle to the utmost and report immediately).

“No matter how sophisticated the law is, any allegation that derogates from the stereotype is likely to be approached with a degree of suspicion.”

The judge entitled the last section of his decision “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” the title of an autobiography by the late American writer and poet Maya Angelou. It may also have been a nod to Gray herself, who has a tattoo of a caged bird on one arm.

The reference was greeted with delighted cries from several in the predominantly young, female audience, who immediately recognized it.

“Rape in the case of Maya Angelou is used to reflect the suffering of her race, and to (her) a bird struggling to escape its cage, trying to understand and respect both her body and her words,” the judge explained for those less well-read.

“Virginia Woolf suffered from what she called ‘looking-glass shame,’ an aversion to seeing herself in mirrors.

“How do we understand our own sufferings, with what words and to what ends?” Zuker asked. “Going (to one hospital and then another, as Gray did), waiting 48 hours? 72 hours to go to the police? Is too long ever too long? Does pain have a time limit? … Mr. Ururyar raped Ms Gray …

“Rape it surely was,” he said.

The 29-year-old Ururyar, who now lives in Vancouver, returns to court Monday when prosecutor Jennifer Lofft will attempt to persuade Zuker that Uruyar’s bail should be revoked pending his Oct. 24 sentencing.