Feel the need to purge some personal thoughts out.
I don’t have a #metoo story.
I don’t have a #metoo story because it wasn’t “that bad.”
I don’t have a #metoo story because I didn’t, and won’t ever follow legal pursuit.
I don’t have a #metoo story because I don’t know what backlash there would be for putting my story out there, or what risks I would be taking if I ever tarnished his reputation. He said he could make me lose my job, and that he could make me “unhireable” for any other job in town. He said he would tell my friends and family about how crazy I act, and he would convince them all I “needed help.” His family is well known and respected, and my life would be ruined if I “tried to disgrace that name.”
I don’t have a #metoo story because at the end of the day, years later I’m actually still sorta worried about it.
Looking back, I wasn’t alone. My family and friends were always there for me, but in the moment, you can’t see it. You can only process what the bully is throwing at you, and it’s their word against yours.
So what happens next? Nothing? Nothing, I guess. We move on. It goes away.
And that is the point of #metoo (and #whyididntreport)… The ‘thing’ can happen. And life goes on. Life for one person doesn’t change. It can happen, and they don’t even have to think about it or deal with it ever again. Life for the other person becomes literally just dealing with it, for a really long time, because that’s the way things are.
greenifer 