Margaret Cho is once again inspiring sexual assault survivors to publicly share their stories, this time with the hashtag #isurviveandTHRIVE, launched today.
You know what would really break the Internet? If every rape and molestation victim came forward and said #isurviveandTHRIVE – do you?
— Margaret Cho (@margaretcho) July 30, 2015I'll go first. #isurviveandTHRIVE
— Margaret Cho (@margaretcho) July 30, 2015Cho kicked off the conversation without much explanation as to what inspired her to act today. But within an hour of her first post, hundreds of fellow survivors and fans had already flooded Twitter with their own stories of abuse and statements of solidarity.
I take a little bit of my own body back every day #isurviveandTHRIVE @AshtangaCairo #Life
— Suzanne Gardinier (@SGardinier) July 30, 2015#isurviveandTHRIVE is so important! We need to recognize the army of survivors out there – we are not alone. There is healing in community.
— The Best Stacie Ever (@BestStacieEver) July 30, 2015“I want people to know they are not alone,” Cho told NBC News. “Rape, molestation, sexual violence is more common than anyone admits. If all survivors – I say survivors, not victims – if all survivors came forward we could actually see the problem clearly and find a solution and hopefully heal.”
This isn’t the first time Cho has used social media to share her personal struggles and encourage others to do the same. In November 2014, she created the hashtag “#tellyourstory,” urging her followers to do just that.
I am a rape victim and a survivor of childhood sexual abuse. I come forward in solidarity with all women who have suffered. #tellyourstory
— Margaret Cho (@margaretcho) November 4, 2014In a February 2015 interview with NBC News, Cho opened up in more detail about her own history of abuse.
“I was a victim of childhood sexual abuse and also a rape victim. These all happened before I was an adult,” Cho said. “They were traumatic experiences that I needed to work through. And as a result, unfortunately, I did become sexualized very early, but not by choice. I wouldn’t say that my experiences were great until I at least became an adult.” Cho has never been shy about using her platform as an entertainer to engage on more serious topics. In an appearance last week on Late Night with Seth Meyers,she asserted that white people scold Asian Americans about racial issues “because they’re too scared to tell black people” how to feel about race. Today’s #isurviveandTHRIVE hashtag and related messages have already been retweeted, favorited, and used hundreds of times in just two hours, so far. And this likely won’t be the last time Cho re-launches this conversation. “This is my life’s work,” Cho said. “I want to heal the world.”
Nick Kim Sexton Recommended
