Most people have a picture in their head of what a sexual abuse survivor looks like. And, if they were never abused, they surely don’t think that picture looks like them.
It is common to try and put distance between tragic and traumatic events and our own lives. “It could never happen to me because I am not [fill in the blank] or I did not [fill in the blank].” This distance seems to give us comfort. The truth is, sexual abuse can happen to anyone.
Sexual abuse knows no racial, gender, sexual orientation, economic or other boundaries. Here is an interesting article that will help put that to perspective. It’s titled “Strong Black Men are Victims of Assault, Too.” Tied to the #YouGoodMan movement, this article highlights the different ways that sexual abuse survivors are embraced and supported, depending upon the survivor’s gender and race.
Let’s all make an effort to try to better understand and support the people in our lives who have been sexually abused.