I didn’t report it because I knew what it would mean for me if I didn’t. He was the most popular guy in school.
Everyone liked him and not a single person would not have jumped to his defence. I was new at school…barely been there for half a year. I didn’t really have friends. I told one friend I had made and she told me that if I ever told, no-one would believe me and would think I’m just an attention seeker. I was bullied into fear of speaking by him because of the power that he had in the school. I didn’t wanna move schools again. So I remained silent.
If you are rape survivor and need someone to talk to, please don’t hesitate to call the ‘Stop Gender Violence‘ helpline at 0800 150 150.
Note: Rape myths abound after the Vavi rape accusation was brought to light. These myths hurt all rape survivors – and if you ever experience sexual violence, these myths will hurt you too. The most common myth I’ve seen is the fallacy that if you don’t report to the police, it didn’t happen. (See here.) I put out a call on Twitter for survivors who didn’t report to send me their story. To follow the series, see here.
If you would like to include your story in this conversation, please email me: michelle at journoactivist dot com. I will assume anonymity for all submissions unless specified otherwise.
Michelle Solomon 
How old were you? Was this a high school or a tertiary institution?
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