04-05-17 Sensitive Show on Sexual Abuse and Violence
Sexual abuse and violence crosses all race, gender and socioeconomic lines. Statistically, one in five women will experience sexual violence, and considering that it is the most unreported crimes, those numbers are probably higher.
While FLAUNT! is about living a wonderful, beautiful, happy life and, for the most part, is lighthearted and fun, life sometimes hands us serious things that cannot simply be glossed over. We can’t simply pull ourselves out of depression, physical or mental illness, rape, assault or death of a loved one by choosing to get over it. Sometimes, that which we experience IS too much to handle. Sometimes we need professional help, sometimes we just need time.
As hard as we try to “get over” something, sometimes life spirals out of control and our methods of coping don’t work. People around us don’t understand what we are going through and the system doesn’t work the way we want it to. As is often the case with sexual assault or sexual violence of any kind, the resulting PTSD can be devastating to survivors as well as to friends and family.
While more and more awareness is currently being brought to rape culture and the truth about sexual abuse and violence, as a world, we still have a long way to go.
In this week’s show Parker shares her story as a sexual assault survivor. In candid, raw and vulnerable terms she shares all facets of her journey, from nearly failing out of school, to heavy drug use, to taking on the role of abuser, to a series of choices, actions and reactions that, absent her sexual assault, would not have been her own. She shares the impact her assault had on her family, friends as well as how it’s colored her life. As a survivor, she has flourished, and she continues to grow, heal and impact the world for good, but this has been no easy journey.
Whether you have experienced sexual assault or violence directly, or have been impacted by it through someone you love, this show will touch your heart and will educate you about one of the most prevalent issues we face today.
