Dear Stanford University Survivor,

I know that you have no idea who I am, but I want you to know that I am with you. After reading your letter, I was in tears because of how proud I am of you. What happened to you was unforgivable. Nobody expects you to bounce back to normal in a short amount of time, but you have surprised us all, especially me. In your letter, you were brave enough to not hold back on how you feel. You made sure everyone knew your side of the story. You called Brock Turner out on what he did. You showed that you will not let this defeat you, and for that, I am proud of you. I can not even begin to imagine the several different emotions you have gone through. The closest I can come to imagining is to read your letter that expresses more emotion than anything I've ever read.

I pray for you. I pray that you keep up the courage you have. You mentioned in your letter that you can't hardly sleep at night and that you're afraid to be alone. I'm here to tell you that that behavior is expected. Don't feel defeated because of your fear. To me, you are showing more courage than could possibly be imagined from a situation like this. We all know Turner did not receive the amount of time that he should have been given, but I can assure you that even though he has a short sentencing, nobody will let this down. So many people are disgusted by what he did, that he will never be able to live his life normally again.

I'm not here to remind you of what happened and complain about how evil people can be. I'm here to tell you how proud I am of you, how proud we all are of you. You fought and never gave up. Keep fighting and never stop. Continue to shine your light so girls everywhere can absorb it, just as you talked about in your letter. Never give up. We are all proud of you for your strength and courage. One last thing I want you to know, is that to me, you aren't a victim. To me, you're a survivor because of your bravery through everything. Never stop being brave.

Love, Kristen Giddens