collection

collection

#metoo

You are not alone. Together we can de-stigmatize speaking out about our experiences with sexual harassment, assault, and more.

I Know Why They Call You a "Hoe"
I KNOW. I know what it is like to be molested. I know how it feels to be violated by a family member and a friend of the family. I know what it is like to have to keep the secret out of fear that you will get in trouble or hurt if you tell. I know what it is like to be molested by someone of the same sex, and in turn become confused about your own sexuality. I know what it is like to think that you were just ‘playing a game’ when in fact someone was stealing your innocence. I know how it feels to be so ashamed that you cannot even tell your closest friends, because you do not want them to look at you or your family differently. I know what it is like to feel as if you are going to throw up when someone touches you in the same way that an abuser touched you, even if that abuse happened 30 years ago.
By Aly Oh5 years ago in Viva
The Third Date... #MeToo
My First Kiss Two weeks before High School Graduation I finally got the courage to talk to the first guy I ever felt feelings for. I was warned by friends that I should be careful. I said I would take it slow and I did take it slow. After High School Graduation we discussed our first date. During this time I lived thirty minutes away from him and neither of us had our licenses but we were both 18. We were just late bloomers when it came to getting a license. For the first date we agreed on a place near his house so met each other there at the place.
By Jan Jas5 years ago in Viva
My Rape, Changed My Life.
Some women have a higher body count because they’re put in a sexual situation that involves pressure from a man. “I’ve said no - and they beat me.”
By Allyson Flower6 years ago in Viva
Murky Halloween
As a freshman in college, I had never been to high school, and therefore, really had little to no social life experience. I associated with adults primarily and didn't know how to interact with kids my own age (17). I had never really had any experiences with alcohol before and didn't really know what it would do to me.
By Katarina Cirillo6 years ago in Viva
The Sins Of Maryam
Everyone has a dark past. Including Maryam. And hers is something too humiliating to tell. Too vivid to forget. A memory she so desperately prays to erase from her mind. Maryam always prays. Raised as a Muslim, she was taught and trained to oblige and beseech for God’s forgiveness. Five times a day. Yet she can never seem to shake off her past. It keeps lurking around. Stalking. Waiting to pounce and stab her in the back. The more she tries to break away, the more it strangles her. Her dark past is one odd story. One with no marked beginning nor definitive end.
By secretsonneteer6 years ago in Viva
It's Only Logical: A Sexual Trauma Memoir
My eyes appear in the dark, the jade encircling the noir. I maul an idea until I notice a rhythm, a pattern. My pupils focus; I see the downward motion—pushing, pulling, biting, I throw my head back, hands down, unleashing a compact bliss. My own depth darts to me, moving toward the French doors, looking for leaves that sway until the incapacitating winter. The wheat bristles wave and the leaves shake me. My mind runs to something banal as my hand runs down my body; my skin awakens. The twilight air flows in, and my mind, awake, turns toward my heart, inducing an anxious bliss that wakes me up and simultaneously kills me. To breathe at once into consciousness, an anxious flush makes way through nervous bundles and the axonal abyss, shooting stars into my heart. This rush is a shock that tumbles me into the darkness, into the woods and looking at myself while looking at everything else. The waking are startled in a hunt for green, seeking a letter that lost itself on its way to me. Like the purloined letter, I remain unaware of the message’s contents.
By Jennifer6 years ago in Viva
#MeToo
I know I'm a bit late to this movement but better late than never; and when better to dig up past trauma than the middle of the night ya know?
By Katie Parish6 years ago in Viva
Military Reckoning
Right now, all over the news and social media is the horrific story of Vanessa Guillen and her tragic murder. The Army investigators say they have found no evidence of her being sexually harassed but her family thinks otherwise and I'm inclined to agree with them.Her death is one of many casualties of the United States military and its toxic culture issues. The military has long had a problem with sexual harassment/assault within its ranks and a reporting/ justice system that often harms the victims further. A large group of women veterans/servicewomen wrote a letter outlining demands to improve the failures of the service, titled “Women Vets & Servicewomen Demand #JusticeforVanessaGuillen - 4 July 2020”. I encourage you to give it a read, so many women risked putting their names out there and standing up for justice, that you can at least spend a moment to view it.
By Mikayla Daniels6 years ago in Viva
Telling My Story
It all came to a head when I was 8 years old. The sexual abuse I had suffered for years was progressively getting worse. It started out rather innocently at first. My uncle cornered me more times than I can count while he was babysitting me. Sometimes when we were alone, he would grab me close to him and force me into a hug. He rubbed my bum in a circular motion that I came to despise. He said, "Come here and give your uncle a kiss.” I obeyed because I thought I had to. "Now give me a bigger one. Open your mouth,” he said as he pulled my head towards his.
By Stacy Davenport6 years ago in Viva
Its the price WE HAVE to pay I Don't Think So
Right now it doesn't matter if you are in the military or not, if you were ever sexually assaulted, molested, harassed or any way man handled in a way that you don't appreciate or you said no too; then you are my Battle. You are Vanessa Guillen's battle, because we have been there, I was just the unfortunate one to live.
By Phoenix 6 years ago in Viva
Why I didn't speak out
February 2018, I was in the midst of a crisis. I was in an abusive relationship at the tender age of 17. Now a question you might ask is, why did you stay with him? Well, any woman that has been abused by a spouse, will say this. "I loved him".
By Cheyenne Harrison6 years ago in Viva
Feminism
t.w. sexual assault When I was younger, I wanted to be a housewife when I grew up. I saw my mum lead a life which I saw as easy and enjoyable and jokingly said I'd shadow her for my school's Year 10 work experience week. It took me until I was a bit older to appreciate her vocation as a stay-at-home-mum as being her own choice and an admirable and often arduous task in its own right (my sister was a handful). To me, feminism is empowering and supporting other women's choices rather than ridiculing them and tearing them down. My mum is my inspiration and has worked extremely hard to help me get to where I am today, and people who judge her for not working, I believe, are missing the point of what it means to uplift other women. Feminism means to me the ability to choose and not be judged on the basis of gender.
By Kate Charlton6 years ago in Viva