Wednesday, July 30, 2014

"I believe you. It's not your fault."

I have just finished once again pounding my head against the desk after reading about yet another district that not only did not protect the victim of a rape; they punished her.
While I really, really would like to hope that enough of these lawsuits and public outcrys will make a dent in the colossal level of ignorance that still is out there, I know it is still out there. People who are in levels of trust and authority do not always respond to our kids with support, protection, and prosecution of actual lawbreaking.
It thus is clear that there is very much a need for the tumblr "i believe you | it's not your fault":
If you’re reading this, and things are tough, we want you to know some facts right off the bat: that your body is YOURS, that consent is not a gray area, that it doesn’t matter what you were wearing, that fitting in isn’t as important as it seems (though caving to peer pressure isn’t the end of the world either), that you have the right to set and defend your own boundaries, that you have the right to have fun, that some things get better and other things, honestly, kind of don’t... 
This blog isn’t about advice, exactly—though that’s certainly a part of it (ask us anything!)—as much as it is about solidarity.  If your step-dad tells you that “it’s your fault,” we’re here to stand in defiance of that, forever, without question. If your teacher says you “shouldn’t have made a scene,” we’re here to shout in one great big voice that you didn’t make that scene—your harasser did. If your family or your town or your school seems so small and small-minded that you think you might just fold up into nothing, we’re here to let you know that the world is much, much bigger.  If you have questions about anything, no matter how insignificant, we’re here, and there are so many of us!
Do share it.

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