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Brad Simpson was groomed and sexually abused by a private sports trainer from age nine to his mid-teens. He didn’t tell anyone about the abuse for the next 35 years. “It was scary; I was afraid of judgement most of all. I had feelings of guilt, and I struggled with self esteem and trying to hide my story.”
Her ex-husband sexually abused their daughter. “No more shame. No more secrecy. No more silence.”
Eileen was sexually and emotionally abused by her father starting at age two and sexually abused by her uncle starting at age four. “There was always that darkness inside me, but I didn’t know the root cause for all of it. The floodgates of my memory opened. I spent most of my 20s in a lot of pain and trying to find my way out.”
3% of American men have experienced an attempted or completed rape. A survivor speaks out: “I want young Black men to know that they are not alone.”
Lea Grover was sexually assaulted by an acquaintance at a party when she was fourteen-years-old. “I was alone. I was fourteen. I didn't have a way home. I didn't know the language to use for what happened to me."
Natalie Kish was drugged and raped by an acquaintance at her off-campus apartment. Though Natalie is glad she quickly sought legal and medical attention, it felt overwhelming to share what happened to her with so many people right away.
Katie Clark was drugged and raped by strangers during a graduate research trip in the Dominican Republic. This was unfortunately not the first time she experienced sexual violence. “The way we address this as a society is to make it very clear that we condemn this behavior.”
Danyol Jaye was sexually abused and raped repeatedly by his older cousin between the ages of 7 and 10. “I just want people to know that they don’t have to be afraid of their truth. Your truth is important, your truth is needed.”
Sharon Billings was sexually assaulted and abused by her husband over the course of four years. It started with controlling behavior and emotional abuse and escalated to become increasingly violent. “The biggest thing for me was when I got to the point where I could let go of responsibility for my husband’s actions. I held myself accountable for a long time.”
Stephanie was sexually assaulted by her uncle on a regular basis between the ages of four and twelve. “It was something I had kept to myself for so long. It really molded a lot of my thoughts, my feelings, my behaviors. It was this huge burden.”