Olimpia Coral Melo Cruz, a women’s-rights activist from the Mexican city of Puebla, is a survivor of revenge porn—sexual content that is shared without the consent of those featured within it. She turned her experience into action, and in April 2021, Mexico passed Olimpia’s Law, federally prohibiting the sharing of such content without the subject’s permission.
Most U.S. states have passed similar measures, and consequences for distributing revenge porn vary in some places from misdemeanor offenses to felonies. But anti-revenge-porn legislation has yet to pass on the federal level.
Melo Cruz and I are kindred spirits, and I hope that she inspires people around the world to not only take up this cause but also speak up for themselves. It can be difficult to be a survivor, speaking up about something so personal, but Melo Cruz’s impact will not only be meaningful right now, it will be remembered in history—and history is on her side.
She has changed the world. That is what she symbolizes.
Nguyen is the CEO and founder of Rise, a civil rights nonprofit that advocates for survivors of sexual violence
- Donald Trump Was Just Indicted. Here's What to Know About the Charges and the Case
- What Could Happen Next for Donald Trump
- Trump's Indictment Drama Showcased His Rivals' Weakness
- Inside Ukraine's Push to Try Putin For War Crimes
- Bad Bunny's Next Move
- Elon Musk Signs Open Letter Urging AI Labs to Pump the Brakes
- Eliezer Yudkowsky: Pausing AI Developments Isn't Enough. We Need to Shut it All Down
- 'How Is This Still Happening?' A Survivor Questions America's Gun Violence Problem
- Cheryl Strayed Will Always Be Here for You
- Who Should Be on the 2023 TIME100? Vote Now