Below is the 13th submission to the Community Forum for Survivors submitted anonymously on 10/10/2018. We appreciate the trust this survivor, and all survivors, place in us by sharing their stories. Note: MCRCC does not allow comments on blog posts.

Survivor’s gender identity: Female

The survivor’s age at the time sexual violence was perpetrated against them: 20

The survivor's age now: 33

The survivor’s description of sexual violence perpetrated against them:

"I was walking home around 9pm from dinner with friends, along a main street. I was crossing a side street when two men approached from behind me and grabbed my arms, and began trying to haul me away down the quiet side street. I could slip away from one of them, but then the other one was there, reaching for my other wrist or upper arm. I carried a small pocketknife in my purse in those days for safety, but there was no way I could get to it, and even if I could, these two men could easily overpower me. I screamed for help. A stranger came up, a man who casually told them to leave me alone—I remember that, how I was screaming for my life, and he could come along and just say, "leave her alone" and get a reaction—and they released me. I wanted to thank the stranger, or call the police, or scold them, but I just ran away and ran the rest of the way home, about a half a mile. My arms were bruised the next few days. For many months, I was unable to walk alone at night and would have panic attacks. Still, more than 10 years later, I tend to look around more cautiously when I'm walking at night. And I still think, what would have happened to me if that stranger had never come along? I remember thinking afterward, maybe they just wanted to rob me, but they could've so easily snatched my purse or my wallet, and they didn't."