On Rape

Rape is a construct.

But this doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

It is very real.

It means that rape is how I define it.

It isn’t how my attacker defines it.

It isn’t how another survivor defines it.

It isn’t how society defines it.

It isn’t how the law defines it.

I define my rape.

I am not ashamed of my rape.

Because it isn’t my fault that one human is heinous enough to do this to another human.

Because it isn’t my fault,

When I don’t give consent,

And you don’t stop.

When I am too drunk to give consent,

And you don’t stop.

When I am coerced into giving consent,

And you don’t stop.

When I consent to one sexual act and you went on to another,

And you don’t stop.

When I change my mind,

And you don’t stop.

It is rape when it feels like rape to me. No ifs, ands, or buts.

Being a survivor of rape,

It doesn’t make me lesser.

It doesn’t make me weaker.

It doesn’t make me not whole.

No rapist can take anything away from me.

I am still a complete person.

I am still a complete person who is angry and disappointed and LOUD.

I am LOUD about my rape because it is a part of my life.

Rape. It is not a profanity.

So don’t censor me.

Say the damn word.

I am LOUD today, because it is my truth.

Unfortunately, it is my truth.

And the truth of many other women in the world.

I am LOUD because rape shouldn’t be so prevalent that it has become a rape culture.