Rape Culture Can't Take Us Down

Over the last ten years, since I started really digging into this work- healing my own traumas and learning about the generational traumas that my family and I have been working through- I’ve come to realize that our experiences are not unique.

That is both comforting and disturbing in the same breath.

It’s comforting, only in the fact that I now realize that when others have spoken about their traumas and have also talked about how they’ve struggled and overcome those struggles, it has helped others heal.

The power of storytelling can connect us and our humanity, and it can be very healing.

The disturbing aspect of our experiences not being unique is that we have uncovered just how deep this problem of sexual abuse and assault really is.

It’s easy to get overwhelmed and angry about it.

It’s easy to feel negativity start to well up in ourselves about the injustices that happen to children.

But my goal with this platform is to raise awareness, speak up about these injustices, and help parents, who are survivors, find their own paths to healing and reclamation.

It is my goal to help survivor parents break generational cycles, and also prevent future abuse.

There were difficult times this year (and we still have 4 months left of the year), when survivors collectively felt retraumatized by the public displays of rape culture: between the Epstein files, the case of rape and murder victim Lyanna in France that sparked national outrage, and the unprecedented rates of online sexortion aimed at youth. And that’s only the high-profile, white-privilege cases. If we delve into Black, Indigenous, and Brown cases, the stories are even more disheartening.

But we also had some powerful moments of progress around the world. Survivors and allies of all genders are leading the charge for political change. They’re being invited into rooms and at tables where the words ‘child sexual violence’ were never uttered before, and are now on the political agenda.

Now that may not seem like a positive change (because let’s be real- government always moves at a snail’s pace), but when you think about the fact that survivors have been completely ignored before, this awareness- that has been growing steadily now- this acknowledgment by governments, is a step towards healing- and hopefully prevention and justice…

Momentum picked up with the MeToo movement in 2017. It began sprouting in various parts of the world. In 2020, Chile’s feminist battle cry rang around the world: “the rapist is you”. Colombia made child marriage illegal across the country (something even the U.S. can’t say)in 2025. The G7 put online child sexual exploitation in their communique (their yearly pledge on what they’re committing to work on/towards), and this year survivors and Congress are demanding the complete, unredacted release of all remaining government and Department of Justice (DOJ) files, genuine institutional accountability, and criminal prosecutions for co-conspirators and enablers. Also this year, Meta lost major legal battles centered on youth safety, platform addiction, and consumer protection. Meta was held accountable for all the ways they have harmed children and designed their products to make them vulnerable to exploitation- and it looks like that ball is just starting to get rolling.

Churches, youth groups, schools, and tech companies are being hit by a tsunami of lawsuits.

This is one of the ways that survivors are taking back their power.

This is what change looks like.

This isn't just happening in the news headlines; it’s happening in local courtrooms and living rooms. Survivors are speaking out.

And this is where my battle cry to you comes in. This movement of women’s rights, survivors’ rights, our sexual health and reproductive rights, child rights and protection, is just getting warm. There is still so much incredibly important work to be done.

But you don’t need to be on the streets as an activist to do the work. If you can and want to, I definitely encourage you to do so. It can be very empowering.

But the work begins just by you beginning to love and value yourself. It begins by knowing your worth, reclaiming it, stepping into your power. It begins by learning how to develop, implement, and uphold your boundaries. It begins by seeking out the support that you need.

It begins by asking for help, something that can be very scary for a survivor. It begins by sharing your story, which for many is way harder than it sounds (and you don’t have to share your story publicly; you can share it with one person you trust).

It begins by locking arms with others who need to hear your story so that it may empower them too.

It begins by no longer allowing yourself to tolerate disrespect and boundary violations.

It begins by speaking up.

It begins by empowering your children and teaching them about their rights and how to uphold them, so that they can prevent abuse.

It begins by realizing you have nothing to be ashamed of, and that it was not your fault, no matter what happened.

Leave a comment

It begins by not slut shaming women who embrace their sexuality, and it begins by not slut shaming yourself for having desire, despite the traumas that you endured. And that’s a really big one.

It begins by beginning to heal, and learning to thrive.

My friends, 2026 still has months ahead of us, shining on us like the sun rising on the dawn of a brand new era, and we can stand with our heads held high, allowing the light to burn away the darkness.

Let’s step into the light and walk hand in hand towards that bright future of progress, growth, and empowerment together.

If you’re a parent with your own lived experience, I invite you to become a member of the Brave Movement (I’m a co-founder along with 15 other survivors from across the globe) and connect with other survivors who are working to end child sexual violence. Even if you can’t do advocacy work, you can help spread the word about the movement, or just keep up with what we’re up to.

I want to thank you for being with me on this journey: for being a subscriber, for being an Instagram follower, for connecting with me and sharing your stories, for asking for help and advice, for stepping forward and taking risks.

I want to thank you for your support of my platform, of the work that I’m doing, for letting me know that it’s made a difference in your life, for connecting in ways that have fueled my mission.

And I want to remind you today that I am here for you. I want to see you succeed. I want to see you heal. I want to know your children are safer because you spoke out.

The vision that I have for CONSENTparenting for the rest of this year is so big that sometimes it scares me, but that’s what’s even more exciting about it. And I’m so thrilled to have you on this journey with me.

So I invite you to make this a conversation.

You have a voice, and your voice matters.

So I invite you to spark up conversations, to be more vocal, to utilize your voice to speak out and empower others through sharing your story, through sharing about your challenges and how you’re overcoming them, or if you’re struggling, ask for help so that others can support you in your journey of healing.

If you’re a parent, working towards healing is one of the greatest gifts you can give them- no matter how long ago your trauma happened, no matter how old your children are.

I want to thank you for all the work that you continue to do, for all of those who are doing the work of educating, who are doing the work of empowering, who are doing the work of supporting those who need that support.

And I look forward to continuing this work with you in 2027 (and beyond) as we step forward into this bright new future where we end rape culture through all the small and big actions- for this generation, and generations to come…

Until next time, let’s continue to create consent culture, one conversation at a time.

Stay empowered.