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      sexual violence

      E. Jean Carroll leaves a court building flanked by a man and woman in professional dress.

      E. Jean Carroll and Other Survivors Don't Need an Excuse for Not Screaming

      The millions of sexual assault survivors deserve our respect, support, and empathy, but never our pity.

      Carol Norris
      Apr 28, 2023

      The E. Jean Carroll vs. Donald Trump rape trial is, no doubt, eliciting a lot of understandable reactions in sexual assault survivors.* I'm a psychotherapist who, for years, has been privileged to work with many survivors. I used to consult to a rape crisis center. I don't need to hear one word of a trauma story to do trauma work, but I've heard countless stories. Stories of hope, of shame, of fear, of anger, of grief and betrayal. Stories of atrocious violence. Stories of glorious resilience.

      I've watched police be respectful and kind to someone as they're reporting their assault. I've also seen police be dismissive and blaming and horrible, forcing a person, often still in what is colloquially known as shock, to prove that the "encounter" was not consensual or that she was no somehow "asking for it." I've witnessed people become "disgusted" with their partners who were assaulted, and so they leave or divorce such "damaged goods." I've heard how friends no longer know how to talk to a person, treating them like they're fragile beyond measure or as if they're contagious and if you get too close then you'll somehow become infected. I've known employers who fired their employees because they didn't have a "legitimate" reason for taking time off from work to process and integrate such a fragmenting experience. I've heard how people have been excommunicated from previously close-knit families or neighborhoods because they dared to name that an uncle or a brother or a woman down the street was their perpetrator. There have been beautiful stories of solidarity and support, too. But all too often, contending with the shaming, cruel reactions from others adds very real trauma on top of trauma.

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      Opinion
      sexual violence
      Two eighth grade students hug

      Surging Number of US Teen Girls Face Sexual Violence and Extreme Sadness: CDC

      "Young people in the U.S. are collectively experiencing a level of distress that calls on us to act," reads the study.

      Julia Conley
      Feb 13, 2023

      Child development experts and other advocates said Monday that new federal data regarding the struggles of adolescents in the United States should serve as an urgent call to action, as teenage girls reported facing rising levels of sexual violence as well as suicidal thoughts and depression in a survey taken by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

      The CDC's biennial Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which was given to 17,000 teenagers at public and private high schools across the U.S. in 2021, found that nearly 1 in 3 adolescent girls seriously considered suicide that year—representing an increase of 60% over the previous decade.

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      News
      adolescents
      Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) chats with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) alongside billionaire-philanthropist Tom Steyer

      On the Politics of 'Believing Women'

      What we've seen as a result of Warren's statement is further perversion of the language of abuse and victimhood in a context it was never meant to be used.

      Cari Hernandez
      Jan 14, 2020

      This week, Elizabeth Warren released a statement confirming that Bernie Sanders told her a woman couldn't win the presidency. We know some liberal feminists have a tendency to weaponize trauma for personal gain, and what we've seen as a result of Warren's statement is further perversion of the language of abuse and victimhood in a context it was never meant to be used.

      "Believe women," says Neera Tanden, President of the Center for American Progress and a former close advisor to Hillary Clinton. You might recall that Tanden outed a #metoo victim during an all-staff meeting, to the shock of those in attendance.

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      Opinion
      Elizabeth Warren
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