The Speak Project

Yesterday I made it abundantly clear how I feel about speaking out regarding racism and racially motivated harassment, and the damaging effects of silencing the marginalized. But in the past I've also discussed speaking out regarding abuse; I wrote about an abuse survivor in my contribution to the IPPY Award-winning charity anthology Winter Rain. I spoke on USA Today about how part of my motivation for writing The Lost was anger over how society had created this framework that enabled myriad and painful types of abuse and harassment, and how it had affected so many of the women in my life. One common theme among these survivors and in my own story of abuse was that silence enabled abusers, and so abusers demanded silence – or else.

In case you haven't noticed, I'm not very good at being silent in the face of anyone's abusive bullshite.

And I don't think anyone should have to be.

If silence is a weapon against the abused, then your voice is a weapon against abusers. So I've created the Speak Project: a platform to collect and display the stories of people who've survived abuse and harassment. People who are still undergoing abuse and harassment, who need somewhere to find the stories of others like themselves and realize they're not alone.

Maybe that abuse takes the form of domestic violence. Maybe it takes the form of sexual assault. Maybe it takes the form of body-shaming. Maybe it takes the form of racist, misogynistic, homophobic, transphobic hate crimes. Maybe it takes the form of ableist erasure of the disabled. Abuse has many forms, but only one label, and every type of abuse deserves a voice.

Many voices.

You can post openly or anonymously; the platform is open to anyone, and will add your story to a wall-style gallery that people can browse and share. No story is too large, or too small. Share as much or as little as you feel safe sharing. Protect yourself above all things – and if you don't feel safe sharing at all, if you only want to read others' stories, that's all right. Your emotional health and well-being matter, and I only hope that if you don't feel comfortable speaking, that it at least helps you to listen.

My own story is the first of many. It's not unique. Hell, this project probably isn't even that unique. But it was my story to speak, so I did.

And I hope you will, too.

I hope you'll share your story, and speak.