The other day, I was scrolling through my Facebook feed, when I came across a video that everyone seemed to be sharing. It was such a trend, that I decided to take a look, and to my surprise, by the end of the video I was crying and I was shook. It was Halsey, American singer reciting a poem she wrote that sounded like every girl could relate to, unfortunately. Her poem consisted of sad, truthful, moving stories and powerful words.
Her first part of the poem was a story about being 14, and holding her friend's hand at a Planned Parenthood, not knowing exactly what was going on. She emphasized the colors of the room as if she could relive that memory, again and again. She exclaimed how she couldn't tell anyone, especially her mom, because an incident at Planned Parenthood is not taken lightly and it's a serious situation. An adult that was trusted, took advantage of the situation and Halsey's friend, and just that alone wasn't the only story. She explained how being raped wasn't her friend's option, and she couldn't afford it. I mean she was only a kid, how could she see this coming? Innocence was taken.
Next was a personal story that Halsey had, where she trusted another guy because he was the only one she knew in the new neighborhood. Little did she know, she could relive another vivid nightmare of herself being taken advantage of. It's too descriptive of a memory. She was "too young to know why it aches between her thighs."
It feels as if it gets more and more relatable when she talks about her 2012 experience. If you have not felt moved yet, just wait for this next story. Her boyfriend was buying her things and he says it's basically her responsibility to do sexual things with him as if that's a tradeoff. In addition, when she says, "And I'm confused 'cause he's hurting me while he says please... He's my boyfriend, so why am I filled with unease?" is one of the most detrimental lines I believe. If you like someone so much, why would hurt them like that? You could hear the fear and pain in her voice as it breaks a little.
She shares that nobody can escape this tragedy because she's supposed to be protected now that she's a star and it's 2017, but that doesn't stop them, not even a little, not at all. So, she isn't going down without a fight in 2018.
She claims this is just the beginning of a movement and we're stronger than what we seem. She points out "heroes" for standing up for justice and gives them the credit they deserve. She knows rape happens everywhere and at any time, place, age, you name it. It's a serious issue and she damn well addresses it. Halsey, you're now my hero.
If you haven't seen Halsey's speech/poem, I hope that you do. Yeah, she mentions the descriptive detail of sexual abuse and it's a real scary problem, so it needs to be addressed.
Watch the video here.
