Recently, many women have been tweeting or posting the #metoo on their Instagram. The Me Too movement was created by Tarana Burke to show women that they are not alone and must be empowered to speak up. These women experienced different forms of sexual violence and want the world to know their story. This movement became popular when actress Rose McGowan spoke up about her encounter with Harvey Weinstein. She began to encourage women to speak up much like her by tweeting “If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘Me too.’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem.” The Washington Post did a survey and established that 54% of American women report having “unwanted and inappropriate” sexual advances and 95% say that these people go unpunished or free. In order to help students avoid these scenarios The Bird Feed has some tips.

Drinks

When it comes to drinks, many people tend to leave them unattended or accept them from other people. In order to avoid being slipped a date rape drug, you should not leave your drink unattended or accept drinks from strangers or even someone you trust. It is best to take your drink with you everywhere, even to places like the bathroom or with you when you go dancing. You should avoid sharing drinks with others, you never know what’s in them. Avoid drinking from public containers like punch bowls. Be sure to be cautious even around someone you trust, you never know what could happen. It always pays to be alert. If your drink tastes, smells or even looks weird, get a new drink. You can never be too cautious. Sometimes date rape drugs can have a salty taste so if it tastes strangely salty, throw it out and find someone to help you if you exhibit symptoms.

Stay with a trusted group

Avoid going to a party alone and always have a group of close friends attend with you. Always stay with each other at parties or bars. If you’re alone, stay in crowded areas. Walking home alone in the middle of the night is a bad idea so stay with your group even when you’re going home. It can be tempting to go home or in a private room with a person you like but that can put you in a dangerous position. You never know what someone can do when you’re alone with him or her.

Defense

You can also take different self defense classes, but if you don’t want to do that here are some techniques. If someone threatens you with a weapon such as a gun remember that it is unlikely he’ll fire it when he knows people might hear.  Remember that it’s okay if you don’t fight back.  There are many  techniques to avoid situations like this. You can also find videos online to help show you some methods to defend yourself, such as these:

Women’s Self Defense: Level 1 – Rape Escape – YouTube

Krav maga Women’s self defense rape prevention technique – YouTube

Female Self Defence:Groundfighting And Rape Escape Tactics …

When in a scenario

If you experience rape or a sexual assault, the first thing you should do is get to a safe place. Once you are safe and away from any present danger, call a friend or someone in your family to help calm you down. To calm yourself down, you can take deep breaths and tell yourself that you didn’t do anything wrong and that it isn’t your fault. You can call the police and report a crime so the person can be prosecuted. Take this step almost immediately if possible. Do not bathe or change, it will destroy the evidence that you may want to use if you decide to pursue the person legally. Go straight to the hospital to get a rape kit. In order to remember the attack clearly when you relay your story to the police, you should write as many details as you can remember down. Don’t feel like you absolutely need to prosecute. If you choose to do nothing, that is your choice. In order to overcome the trauma, you should consider seeing a therapist.

How to help others who have gone through this

Many people may accuse this friend or loved one of lying or enabling the rapist. The most important = thing you can do is believe them and tell them it wasn’t their fault. Don’t push them to prosecute. You can report the crime to law enforcement if they don’t feel strong enough to do so themselves. Listen to their story and be compassionate. Protect this person by keeping their story private; do not spread hurtful rumors about it. Be there for them and tell them you care about them.

If you have gone through something like this, it doesn’t matter what you were wearing or how intoxicated you were, it is never your fault. Show some support to the women who stand up and tell their story by joining the #metoo movement. You can tweet your story or share it on your social media with the #metoo. Let’s bring awareness to this problem and make a difference.