November 7
2017
[ enough is enough]
Harvey Weinstein. Kevin Spacey. Bill Cosby. The list goes on and on.
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It seems like stories of sexual assault are everywhere, finally, which makes sense because the are everywhere. But perhaps this is where we finally start having a national conversation about it, about how patriarchy, misogyny, and toxic masculinity combine to create this environment that wounds so many people and then looks the other way.
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The Rumpus put together a series of stories (essays, poetry, images, etc.) written by people who have experienced these acts, that will be coming out on a weekly basis. This series, ENOUGH, kicks off today, with a series of essays written by current Rumpus editors, including yours truly. (Oops, I definitely forgot to mention on the site that as of October 2017, I have been the Fiction Editor at The Rumpus!)
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My essay, "This Disease," details a deeply personal incident that has happened to a friend very close to me, and while writing the piece was emotional, reading it up on the site has been even more emotional. It codifies what happened, but also, it feels like giving the power back to my friend by a little bit, by making sure her experience is her, her words heard. I wept for a good twenty minutes after seeing it up. And then it, alongside all the other pieces.
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The series carries a trigger warning for sexual assault. And it definitely triggered me. But. It's important work. And I'm proud to a part of a team that is facilitating this conversation, that is creating space for this conversation.
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