On the eve of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, survivors of sexual violence took to the streets of Oakland, Ca. and Washington D.C. to protest his incoming administration.
The survivors and their allies projected powerful messages on city buildings ―the Convention Center D.C. and the Oakland Police Department ― of how Trump reminds them of their own abusers.
“In this man’s face, I see the ex-boyfriend who chased me through the streets,” one message said in D.C. Another in Oakland said, “This man has the same disgusting smile of my abusive ex-husband when we were in public pretending he was a nice person.”
In a statement on Friday morning, Jadelynn Stahl, president of the Oakland-based activist group DISCLOSE told The Huffington Post: “Survivors of rape and abuse, along with our supporters, are coming together to use our collective voice to name what is happening: a rapist is becoming president... We, as survivors of gender-based violence, came together to assert that our collective vision for a world without gender-based violence persists in the face of the impending administration.”
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DISCLOSE partnered with Washington D.C.-based activist group FORCE: Upsetting Rape Culture for both the protests and the proceeding tweet storm.
Survivors were encouraged to use the hashtag #WeWillNotBeSilent during Trump’s swearing-in ceremony to share their experiences with gender-based violence:
As FORCE co-director Rebecca Nagle said on Friday, “as survivors of violence, we know best the tactics that Trump uses to maintain power because we have lived it.”
Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website.
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