January 23, 2017
On Sunday, HuffPost reporter Matthew Jacobs posted a review of the upcoming film, The Tale. The movie tells a story of an adult survivor of childhood sexual abuse coming to terms with her experience and understanding it from an adult’s perspective. While it was a rave review of a groundbreaking film, we feel that the analysis of the survivor’s experience missed some key points in how we discuss sexual violence.
Take a look at our Twitter thread below, which examines Jacobs’ language:
It is vital that we keep telling stories like @TheTaleMovie, examining them, and learning from them. Thank you to @JenniferFox for sharing your story. @HuffPost and @tarantallegra, let’s examine it a little closer now than you did in your review. (thread) https://t.co/6EryveLIYJ
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
You said, “a complex story of rape, power and misremembering.” We say, “a complex story of child abuse and traumatic memory.” Traumatic memories are not formed or stored in the same way as other ones. Malformed memories are the normal biological response to trauma.
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
You said, “Jenny’s naivety and appetite for affection cloud her judgment.” We say, “Jenny was 13 and so was not in a position to judge the appropriateness of an interaction or to consent to sexual activity. Her abuser exploited her desire for affection.”
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
We cannot conflate sexual abuse of a child with sexual assault of an adult. Children often do not have the vocabulary or social context to understand what’s happening or to explain it to skeptical adults, or the power to extricate themselves from an abusive environment.
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
You said, referring to the 1970s, “Nobody talked about sexual assault or power conflicts with the import that today’s dialogue assumes.” We say, “Throughout history, men had cultivated an environment in which women and girls faced very real threats for reporting their abuse.”
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
You said “adolescent affair,” “they made her their lover,” and “fornicating with young Jenny”. We say “pattern of sexual abuse,” “they sexually abused her,” and “sexually abusing Jenny.” Sexual abuse is not loving or sexy. A 13-year-old cannot consent.
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
@tarantallegra we appreciate your review of this groundbreaking film, and what appear to be your good intentions in highlighting issues of sexual violence, but we encourage everyone engaging in these conversations to reexamine the words they use.
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018
Please know that we chose to make this commentary public so that others can benefit from learning how to appropriately frame and describe issues of sexual violence, child abuse, and trauma. Telling these stories is important, but the way in which we tell them matters, too.
— Safe Horizon (@SafeHorizon) January 22, 2018