Trump has come under fire for his notorious “grab them by the p—y” comments, and during Sunday night’s debate, audiences tuned in to hear his apology (or lack thereof.) But the effect of this discourse spread further than just election polls and news headlines: One organization said that its sexual assault hotline’s traffic spiked.
RAINN, the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization told the Huffington Post that it saw a 33 percent increase in online traffic over the weekend, especially during the debate. “There were times when there were 20-30 people in our queue. This conversation is evidence that sexual violence affects nearly every family in America.”
Survivors also took to social media to share their stories. Writer Kelly Oxford tweeted about her first sexual assault and prompted other women to follow suit, but didn’t anticipate just how many people would come forward. “Women have tweeted me sexual assault stories for 14 hours straight. Minimum 50 per minute. harrowing. do not ignore,” she tweeted on Saturday morning.
Anyone looking for resources in talking about assault or healing from it can visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website, or call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233)
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