I was scrolling down my social media and I noticed the hashtag “ #metoo”. Thousands of victims shared their sexual abuse stories. This trend started a lot of controversies. Some people praised people that came forward to share their story. A few people shamed women and men for sharing their story. There were a few comments where I saw people arguing and making fun of people about what they wrote. I admire all of the women who can forward and shared their Story with the public.
#MeToo trend on social media.
Sexual abuse is something that is so common, but it is so private. A lot of people are uncomfortable expressing their experiences, or they feel like it’s not going to matter if they speak up. Sexual abuse is something that is highly ignored in our society. People are in denial that this issue is so common. Some people will try to convince you that you are being dramatic, or they will make excuses for the perpetrator. People will say ” She shouldn’t have been dressed that way”, She gave him the impression that she wanted to engage in sexual activity ” or they shouldn’t have been in “that kind of environment”, or “what did you expect was going to happen ?”
Sexual abuse is not easy to talk about.
Our society makes it hard for people to confront this issue. Most victims believe its easier to stay quiet and would rather deal with it alone. Its hard enough as is to deal with the trauma of being sexually assaulted, and it’s even harder to deal with the trauma on top of being blamed and bullied for something that you did not have any control over. in reality who wants to be sexually abused? My friend Chadea Little is a student at Kean University. She invited me to a seminar at her school to discuss issues with sexual abuse, domestic violence, and molestation. From personal experiences, I knew that this is something that I needed to be a part of.
Speaking up about things no one wants to talk about.
The National Council Of Negro Women, the Sigmia Gamma Rho Sorority Inc and guest speaker Iyonah Fard came together to talk about the importance of being brave and speaking up for yourself. Iyonah Fard ( Iyonah Renee), is a 24-year-old woman from Newark NJ, who went viral after confronting the man who sexually assaulted her as a child. Iyonah was molested when she was 5 years old by her aunt’s boyfriend and when she saw him again she couldn’t help but speak up about it. She confronted her offender on camera and posted it on her social media. This video broke the internet and it caused many people to reach out to her to hear her story. Iyonah admits that she did not expect her video get so much attention. The reason why she uploaded the video because no one else would listen to her story.
Iyonah advises people to stand up for themselves.
Iyonah plans to take her experiences and use it to help other people. Ms. Iyonah states, ” I plan to create a safe environment where people can go to get away from their offender so the abuse can stop”. Ms. Fard also states, ” some people have no choice but to deal with sexual abuse because they live in the same house as their offender, and most of the time they won’t have anywhere to live “. She wants to encourage anyone who dealt with this to come forward and speak up and to seek justice. Fard stated, ” Even if you cannot tell your family, tell someone”. Ms. Fard believes that speaking up has helped her release her pain and made her realize that her voice and her truth matters. When she found the courage to speak up her family made her feel that it was her fault, and they also felt that she made the family look bad. For this reason, her family disowned her. Iyonah stated,” never be ashamed of what happened to you and never let anybody make you feel like it’s your fault because it’s not.”
The woman behind the video.
Iyonah is someone who is genuine and relatable. She made everyone in the room feel comfortable enough to engage and share their stories. She is very appreciative just to have someone to listen to her story. We all laughed and we all spoke and we all cried. After the seminar, she stayed and talked to everyone and spoke to people one on one. My friend and I spoke to her and showed our respects. My friend Chadea mentioned that we were going to Applebees to get food and invited her to join. She came out with us and we had a really nice time. She is a funny, smart and down to earth person and it was a pleasure meeting her. I know she is going to do great things for the community.
Reasons why you should attend their events.
The members of the N.C.N.W. and the Sigmia Gamma Rho Sorority Inc put together a great seminar. This seminar helps us feel a sense of comfort. It also shows us that there are so many people around you fighting the same battles. The N.C.N.W. and the Sigmia Rho Soitry Inc displays the importance of African Americans joining forces to build each other up and become a family. I met these ladies for the first time and they were very welcoming. I was always was nervous and uncomfortable about being around other women. I am from a town where women were always catty and apart of drama. However, the members of this group were not like that. These ladies made me comfortable to talk and be myself. It is rear to see women come together to build each other up. it felt great to be positive women.
Final Thoughts
I was very thankful for this interaction and I admire these women for putting this event together. This event turned out to be amazing and I plan to attend more of their events. I was thankful to meet women that were loving and caring. These women discussed the hardships that African Americans faces as a culture. Their goal is to find a way to overcome those hardships. These women want people to get rid of the negative stigmas that are associated with our culture and channel a new way of thinking that can help us prosper. I highly recommend their events. If you want to know more information, I will their social media accounts down below.
N.C.N.W ,
