Recently, there was an outbreak of posts on social media that simply said, “Me too.” I initially felt confusion. Upon further research, my heart started to break. As I realized that every individual who posted, “Me too,” had suffered a sexual harassment or assault, my eyes were opened.
I was sexually assaulted my sophomore year of college. I was sexually harassed in my workplace. I was sexually harassed at school. I reported some of my experiences. Nothing was done about them. Others, though, I was too humiliated to bring up.
I posted #metoo on Facebook and Twitter on Monday.
What shocked me was how many of my friends also posted the same status.
I cannot even begin to explain the hurt in my heart that I experienced as I read these posts. Some of the people I followed spoke out about their specific experience. Others simply posted the same thing I did. The people who posted were my childhood friends. They were people I worked with. They were people older than me. They were people younger than me. They were people I went to high school with. They were my family members. They were party goers. They were quiet individuals who kept to themselves. I sat there on Facebook and thought, “You, too?”
The epidemic of sexual violations in our society is so much more than just me. I’ve spent so much time in my shell dealing with my personal sexual trauma that I haven’t bothered to look at those around me who are suffering, too. This affects everyone. In the words of Thomas Merton, “We are bodies of broken bones.” If we are to make a change in our culture, we must overcome our pain and our differences and unite against the forces of violence against us. We need to be talking about our experiences. Movements like the Me Too movement are just the spark to the flame of resistance. We need to speak out against those who have wronged us.
I’ve watched Emily Doe speak out against Brock Turner. I’ve seen Barbara Bowman speak out against Bill Cosby. I’ve witnessed Lena Heady speak out against Harvey Weinstein. I listened to Kesha speak out against Dr. Luke. I heard Taylor Swift speak out against DJ Mueller. Victims are speaking, but why is nobody listening?
Our duty as victims of sexual assault and harassment is to fight. We owe it to ourselves. We owe it to future generations. I want my children and grandchildren to be able to walk down the street without hearing something like, “Hey, Sexy!” I want them feel safe in their workplaces. I want them to have fun with their friends without fearing for their sexual safety.
I won’t be silenced anymore, and you shouldn’t either.
