palopoli:

This photo was taken the night I was raped.

March 20, 2010.

The boy who has the red ‘X’ over his face was my attacker. The rest are my friends.

The photo was taken at a cast party. He was supposed to have given me a ride home.

I’m finally letting the world know. I’m sure many people at my school already knew because of rumours due to the police officers that hovered around me. But now, over a year later, I’m ready to officially admit it to everyone: I was raped.

I’ve almost posted this many times before, but I lose courage. I’m going to post it this time. I want to spread courage to other people. No matter what the circumstances were, it is in no way your fault. If you were sexually assaulted, you are not in the wrong. If you didn’t want it to happen, it shouldn’t have happened.

I know how you feel. Dehumanized, degraded, unimportant, ashamed. I WAS ashamed. Because of what he did to me I felt ashamed. Why did it feel so embarrassing? You should not be ashamed. It is an act of violence. Someone attacked you. Fuck them. They should not be allowed to get away with it. He was not allowed to get away with it.

Yes, you will cry. Yes, you will feel awful. And yes, it gets better. Tell someone. A parent, a friend, a teacher, anyone. It helps, I swear on my life it helps.

You’re not alone. You’re never alone. You are important. You are strong.

I’m happy. You deserve to be happy, too.

-Annabella

(via consensual)