The survivor of the Stanford sexual assault has chosen to remain anonymous, but her voice is still being heard. In a gripping new video, 22 sexual assault survivors came forth to lend their voices to the statement she wrote to her attacker. The video compiles clips, collected by ABC's Nightline in collaboration with End Rape On Campus, of the survivors reading moving excerpts from the letter aloud.
When the 23-year-old decided to remain anonymous, her explanation was simple and powerful: Not only did she want to protect her own identity and make the point that she doesn't need to be identified in order to be listened to; she also wanted her anonymity to send a message that what happened to her can and does happen to so many others.
"For now, I am every woman," she stated. And unfortunately, she is.
"The things that she lost — privacy, dignity, respect, her voice, her confidence — that resonates with so many people who have gone through this," Sofie Karasek, the director of education and cofounder of End Rape on Campus, told Nightline. "It’s hard to compartmentalize that feeling of invalidation and suffering and silence."
But with so many voices of support (including that of Vice President Joe Biden), we hope the survivor — along with anyone else who has experienced sexual assault — knows that she isn't alone and doesn't have to suffer in silence.
If you have experienced sexual violence and are in need of crisis support, please call the RAINN Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
If you have experienced sexual violence and are in need of crisis support, please call the RAINN Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).