Project Unbreakable: Giving Power Back to Sexual Assault Survivors

In the United States, someone is sexually assaulted every two minutes. Fifty four percent of those go unreported to police, and upwards of 97% of rapists never go to jail. Further, an estimated two-thirds of attackers know their victims.

Having said all of that, if you are one of the millions of Americans who has been a victim of this sort of violence, you may at times feel invisible or misunderstood. While group style and individual counseling are typically used to help people cope with the trauma of their experiences, a network of survivors is emerging with a new twist. It’s called Project Unbreakable, and it’s touring the country and giving people back their power.

Project Unbreakable is a project founded by young activist Grace Brown. She travels the country and takes photographs of survivors holding signs that are significant to their attacks. Many include text from what was said to them by their attacker during the assault. She publishes these photos on Tumblr, Twitter and Facebook and it appears that this sort of survivor solidarity is bringing people courage, strength and hope.

Check out the video below of Project Unbreakable. I’ve found strength and beauty in the images; I hope you do, too.

If you’re a survivor of sexual assault, the following links may be of help:

RAINN: Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network

Safe Helpline: 24/7 support through instant-message or telephone

Male Survivor: An online community specifically geared to address male survivors of abuse

And finally, Sierra DeMulder performing a poem for survivors, titled “Paper Dolls”

(We’re Planned Parenthood, and we’re here.)

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