Iraida Torres was 14 years old when she returned to the Manhattan apartment building where her family lived, only to be kidnapped before she reached their unit. A man held a knife to her and forced her into a different apartment in the building, where she was held hostage with two other people.

Erin Helfert was a master’s student when she returned to Morocco to research gender-based violence and criminal justice. “I didn’t intend to become the subject of the very thing I was researching in Morocco,” she recalled. “But there I was.”

Jeanette Morelan faced plenty of challenges during her sophomore year of college: being elected student body preseident, managing family stress, and surviving sexual assault. 

Tiffany living far from home and training for the Olympics in figure skating when she was sexually abused by her coach's husband. She shares her story of resilience and strength to let survivors know they are not alone.

When Cheryl Cloyd Robbins was nine years old, she was sexaully abused by the school bus driver. Cheryl talks openly about living with the effects of sexual abuse, surviving a suicide attempt, and utlimately finding her voice. 

Monica Calzada was intoxicated when she left a college party with her ex-boyfriend’s best friend. “It turned out to be the biggest mistake of my life.” It wasn’t until she started telling her story more openly that she began to process and acknowledge what happened.

Alison worked with a number of law enforcement officials and attorneys to help convict the man who raped her. She believes calling attention to challenging aspects of the criminal justice system may help more survivors feel prepared to report and call attention to weaknesses in the system.

After the assault, Lucy lost her voice—a struggle that would be difficult for any survivor, but was heartbreaking to a professional singer like Lucy.