Swept Under the Rug
(Linocut and ink)
The quotes in this piece were taken from the MeToo Penn Charter Instagram account, a feed which shared the stories of members of the Penn Charter community who have experienced sexual assault.
These stories surfaced in the summer of 2020, and immediately triggered widespread backlash. Many of the stories came from women who had reported their assault or sought help from adults, only to find minimal action taken. In some cases, the adults actually worsened the situation. The ignorance of the frequency of and scale of these events builded on itself to create a culture that silenced victims and invalidated their experiences. Since these stories were published, many steps have been taken by the administration to combat what is clearly a toxic and unsafe culture. Despite this, women continue to face situations that range from uncomfortable to dangerous. While the efforts to support victims and create a safer environment have been effective, they are not an immediate cure. The pain that has been endured on campus and beyond remains and similar events continue to happen, albeit less frequently. We cannot step back now. Maintaining a safe campus means continuing to be conscious of how we talk about sexual assault. These voices were silenced before by a culture of ignorance, and if we go back to pretending this is not happening, history will repeat itself.
The quotes were transcribed by current female-identifying students. Each woman chose from a list of quotes based on personal connection. What shocked me was how closely each girl related to the stories shown. To realize that every woman who selected a quote had a story or two of her own was heartbreaking. Just because this is no longer a high publicity issue does not mean it has gone away. We are still facing disgusting and uncomfortable treatment.
If anything I hope this piece reminds you of how common these incidents are. Every single girl and woman you know has a story. Looking away does not solve the problem; it only avoids it.
