DATE: OCTOBER 25, 2060 (COMMON ERA)
LOCATION: BRESTOV LUNAR BASE, ROVELLI MINING COMPANY, BARRACKS B
Dear Lydia Long, Vice President of Rovelli Mining:
I have been on the moon for six months. I am one of five women residing in Barracks B. We are nearer to the surface of the moon than Barracks A, which houses the men. This means we, on a daily basis, get more radiation saturation than the men. As you know, there are eighty men on the lunar base.
On Earth, I was a biologist specializing in lichens. I and a colleague at MIT were responsible for extracting energy from the alga portion of lichen. Lichen has proved useful on the lunar base for powering segments of the mining operation. Lichens are about relationships, the cooperation between two unrelated organisms. Lichens are both individuals and a network just as light is both a wave and a particle. All of this may seem random, but I will quickly explain.
I am requesting the immediate evacuation of all the women on the lunar base including myself. The first day I arrived at the base I found Aggie crying in the hall. She had been attacked by one of the men. I reported it to the Commander. He said nothing and did nothing. A week later, as I was leaving the Astro Pub, the only bar on the base, two men grabbed me and raped me. I reported it to the Commander and demanded that something should be done. Nothing was done. All five of us have been raped, verbally abused, and physically abused. We are entirely unsafe here. There is no criminal law on the lunar base and no police. There are only corporate law and a few international laws but none extend to sexual assault. The Commander told me yesterday that there was nothing he could do. Men are important to the mining operation. I am important as well. If I stop managing the lichens, the lunar base will lose significant power and Rovelli will lose profits.
Ms. Long, you are a woman. Surely, you can understand how dangerous it is for us. Do me a favor. When you get this letter, locate the moon base on your telescope. You should see a penis spray painted in neon orange on the rooftop. I and Aggie did that. There is no cooperation on the lunar base or beneficial network. No symbiosis like the lichens. There is only domination by men. They are dogs. Moon dogs.
Please evacuate us as soon as possible.
Thank You,
Melissa Carroll, Ph.D.
THE END
More About the Moon:
Moon Facts
More Stories by R.C. Peris:
The Lovely Savage
When a Child Disappears