Notebook

No, President Trump Did Not Condone Sexual Assault With His Morning Tweets

As Congress begins to investigate Dr. Christine Ford's allegations of Judge Brett Kavanaugh sexually assaulting her more than 30 years ago, people on both sides of the aisle are chiming in. In fact, a campaign launched on Twitter after President Donald Trump inferred that Ford's allegations are coming out at a rather convenient time:

People were upset by Trump's words, which turned into the #WhyIDidntReport campaign, where sexual assault survivors explain the reason they didn't repeat their attackers.

Leftist groups and blue check mark Liberals quickly took over the hashtag, just as they did with the #MeToo campaign.

The Women's March were quick to place blame on President Trump and "men like him."

Various celebrities also explained why they never reported their assault:

Some celebrities also explained why they didn't report their multiple attackers:

Various Congressional candidates also felt it was important to share their reasoning;

Many stories and reasonings sounded very similar:

The fear of being blamed was one common theme.

Some were afraid.

And others felt like it was their fault.

Then there were those who were never victims but felt the need to voice their concern and disbelief.

The General Takeaway

Sexual assault is not something that only happens to women. Sexual assault is not something that only happens to Democrats. Sexual assault is something that happens every single day in every country around the world. It's a sad reality but it's something that the average American — and in particular, young women — have come to accept as "the norm."

When I was in college I was "date raped. It was the most painful and confusing time of my life. Here I was, on my own for the first time, trying to make sense of the world as an adult and I had my innocence taken from me. I was confused about what happened. I thought I somehow allowed my attack to happen despite the fight I put up. I was ashamed to talk about what happened. It was embarrassing. If I reported what happened it meant I had to accept that I was a victim — and I never wanted to think of myself that way. 

Going through the legal process of reporting was difficult. I was berated, questioned over and over. I had to repeat my story multiple times, to multiple people and then write it in detail. I had to go through various STD testing and examinations. I had my dorm room searched. felt like was the one who committed a crime, not the other way around.

It's important to make victims feel like they're heard and that justice is being served. What President Trump said is NOT condoning sexual assault. What he's bringing up is one thought that can't be pushed away: was Dr. Ford really assaulted or is she trying to derail Kavanaugh's confirmation simply because she doesn't like him or disagrees with him politically? Is Dr. Ford being opportunistic? If not, why didn't she bring this up before, at any other point in time? Asking those questions does NOT mean Trump is making excuses for Kavanaugh or any accused rapist. It means he's pointing out the obvious question and is wanting Congress to dread lightly.