"There's a banner thing up on the plaza that says we all know sexual survivors and they just haven't told us yet, and when I saw this I didn't know whether to burst out laughing or burst
out crying. I rarely admit it, but I am so--damn--tired. I was sexually assaulted twice, once when I was 12 and once a couple of years ago, and I think about it every day. A lot of times I feel so conflicted, because I want to be able to tell people, but I don't think they really want to hear it. I can't say I blame them, but...I'm tired of freaking out when guys flirt with me. I'm even more tired of feeling like they wouldn't if they really knew me. I'm tired of going red in the face whenever someone mentions sexual assault. I'm tired of feeling like my life is a balancing act between protecting my privacy and keeping my head down in shame. To all those people who think I'm a cute, sweet, joyous girl: I am these things. I am also a outraged human being sick with grief, hatred and the terror that I will never be any kind of woman. There is nothing I want *more* and *less* than for you to see me as I see myself."