Lady Gaga’s new song "Til It Happens To You" is about the unspeakable, yet speaks volumes to the thousands of victims of college campus sexual assaults. The music video warns its audience of its sensitive and “emotionally unsettling” material as it portrays the everyday occurrence of sexual assault on college campuses in a shell-shockingly real way. The video made its debut on Sept. 18 and is spreading awareness of sexual assault like rapid fire with already more than 6 million views. It communicates one of the most important messages of our generation, making sure that the unspeakable finally gets a chance to be heard.
One in every five women and one in every 16 men are sexually assaulted on a college campus, and of those cases, 68 percent go unreported. So how can we speak out against sexual assault when so many people fall silent to it? If you know someone who has gone through it, you know that it’s not easy for them to talk about it, and when you can’t relate to what they’ve been through or how they’re feeling, it’s hard to know what to say to them. I’m not an expert on the subject and I realize that every case is different, but I’ll be speaking up for somebody who recently found their voice, and if anyone can benefit from these words, then we're willing to take our chances.
If you are a victim of sexual assault, don’t blame yourself. What happened was not your fault, and you aren’t alone. And if you haven’t told anyone yet, please do. Whether it’s a friend, an adult, or a counselor, it helps if somebody knows. Even if you aren’t ready to talk about it right away, they’ll be ready when you are. Don’t try handling everything on your own; the weight is too heavy, and you shouldn’t have to carry it alone. It might be hard to find the words, but don’t forget that you have a voice. You deserve to be heard, and if you speak up, your voice could be the one that speaks volumes to somebody else in your shoes. Reporting what happened means you're already fighting back for yourself and everyone who has ever stood where you're standing.
You matter and what happened matters; never think otherwise. Just because it’s common doesn’t make it unimportant or irrelevant. In fact, the fact that it's so common makes your voice even more valuable. Speak up for yourself. Speak up for the 68 percent of individuals who can’t. Whether it happened yesterday, a month ago, a year ago or more, you deserve to fight back and be heard. There is a whole community of people out there who understand what you are going through; never feel like you have to go through it alone.
And to absolutely everyone, be careful. Sexual assault can happen to anyone, and it's more common than you think. You might hear about it from people you know and think that you don't have to worry about it, but nobody expects it to happen to them. So look out for each other, speak up for one another, and never underestimate the power of your voice, because yours could be the one that makes a change.
