About
TRIGGER WARNING: The posts that appear on Violence UnSilenced are often graphic, and may be disturbing to survivors of abuse. Please move forward with caution.
Violence UnSilenced features two personal testimonies each week written by survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and sexual abuse. The site was created by Maggie in February 2009, to shed light within the blogging community on abuse by giving survivors a voice. Violence UnSilenced has been featured on a Madison, Wisconsin CBS news affiliate, iVillage, AOL’s Parent Dish, BlogHer, Momocrats, and was mentioned in the HuffPo. Alltop created a new domestic violence channel after learning about VU, and Violence UnSilenced was a 2010 Bloggies finalist for Best Community Blog. There has been a 3-5 month waiting list for submissions since day one.
You do not need to have a blog to submit your story to Violence UnSilenced. Anyone with a personal story of abuse can be published on VU, but this site is not just for survivors. VU is widely supported by the rest of the blogosphere, as evidenced by the Take the Pledge page, and by all the people who comment and retweet links every week. Even if you are not a survivor, there is so much you can do to support those who are.
Besides the countless bloggers who read and promote Violence UnSilenced each week, the site is also supported by two additional people who generously donate time to keep VU running smoothly. Mojo, a North Carolina-based photographer and blogger, handles all of the technical questions that arise. He created a short promotional video and dozens of VU badges, and he fields emails from anyone having issues installing said badges. Samantha is the talented designer who graciously created and donated the web design for Violence UnSilenced, and she also pays for the registration and annual hosting. Because of Mojo and Sam, the only cost currently associated with VU is time.
All story submissions go to Maggie, and are kept confidential–but please read the safety information below, as there is no such thing as total Internet privacy.
SAFETY
Maggie is not a therapist, a trained professional, nor an expert in any sense of the word. This site is not intended to take the place of a true domestic violence advocacy website, such as the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. or a true rape, abuse, and incest crisis support site, such as RAINN. Please visit those sites for support. If you are a victim of domestic violence and you need help, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). There are additional resources listed here.
Please make sure it is safe for you to be here. Take note of the pink “quick escape” buttons on the right hand sidebar at the top, middle, and bottom of the page. Clicking these buttons will instantly take you to a blank Google page, but you will still need to erase your browsing history. Even this is not a complete fix; Computer, cell, and handheld device use can be remotely monitored and is impossible to completely clear or hide. There are programs for purchase that can be installed on computers and cell phones alike, without your knowledge, that track and record every single keystroke. If you are in danger, please use a safer computer, call your local hotline, and/or call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).
MISSION STATEMENT
One of the last hurdles to eradicating abuse is the culture of silence and shame that exists yet today. You very likely have people in your life that are being abused, you just don’t realize it. Victims are led to believe they are alone, that no one will believe them, and that people will think less of them. Heavy societal pressure generally falls on the victim (ie, “Why doesn’t she leave?”) instead of on the person committing the crime (ie, “Why doesn’t he?”)
Every situation is complicated and unique, and there is no stereotype. Every single survivor of abuse is different from his or her comrades, and by sharing stories here we can educate ourselves as to just how pervasive domestic violence and sexual abuse/assault is, and how it crosses all cultural, racial, gender, sexual orientation, and socioeconomic lines. This is our society’s collective issue, not simply a problem of those directly impacted. There are 70 million blogs out there, and one in four women will experience abuse in her lifetime. We who are active in the blogosphere have a responsibility to listen to our friends and to spread the word, so that we can strip abusers of this critical power. I also believe very, very strongly in the cathartic power of writing.
SUBMIT OR SUPPORT
If you would like to share your personal story to a supportive audience that pledges to listen, please email maggie [at] violenceunsilenced [dot] com. If you are a blogger who believes you are untouched by abuse, you can still support the contributors to this site by taking the pledge, visiting regularly, and leaving supportive comments.
COMMENTS
Please show survivors your support by leaving a comment following each post. I know that sometimes you may be struck speechless, or you may feel that you are repeating yourself on each post — but for each of these survivors, their one post is everything. They will continue to check it, they will circulate it among trusted loved ones, they will link to it now and in the future. They need to know you are listening to them. That their bravery has not been for nothing. Even if it feels as small as, “Thank you for speaking out,” believe me, it won’t feel small to them.
Keep in mind that this is a safe space, and all comments are moderated. If this was your average run-of-the-mill personal blog all comments would be allowed freely, but because of the delicate nature of the subject matter and because the contributors are often writing from extraordinarily vulnerable places, any comment deemed non-supportive or judgmental will be deleted. This is not an open forum or a site structured for healthy debate. Rather, this is a safe place for survivors to speak out in hopes of enlightening their fellow bloggers and trusted loved ones.
If you have had a previous comment approved your comments will probably go through immediately, but still may be subject to removal. Please help maintain a dignified and safe space for the brave post authors.
Thank you for your visit.
HISTORY
Maggie is a writer and freelance journalist based in Wisconsin. After her experience researching, writing and publishing a 6,000 word city magazine article profiling seven survivors of domestic violence, she was profoundly changed. She started talking on her personal blog, Okay, Fine, Dammit, about abuse, and the response from readers was instant and intimate. With their support (including help in naming the site, spreading the word then and now, taking the pledge and submitting stories), she launched Violence UnSilenced in February 2009. From day one there has been a several-month wait list. Maggie may be the one behind the curtain, but Violence UnSilenced is a true community effort. It simply would not exist without you.
For further history, the following posts appeared on Okay, Fine, Dammit leading up to the launch.
The Hidden Quiet Post About Nothing and Everything
ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY VIDEO
