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A few weeks ago, I was scrolling through Twitter and I stumbled upon a news article about a recent sexual assault case. I read the article and then, against my better judgement, immediately went to go look through the replies to the original tweet. I was pleasantly surprised to find that nearly all the replies were full of empathy and compassion for the survivor, but there was one comment from a man that made me pause.
Two months ago I graduated college, broke up with my ex-boyfriend/quarantine roommate of two years, moved back in with my parents and frantically downloaded every dating app imaginable. I had no interest in finding another relationship or dating anyone seriously. I needed space to heal from both the loss of a long term relationship and a sexual assault that occurred in October. But casual dating as a survivor can be extremely complex and triggering, as non-survivors in hookup scenarios often ignore communication in search of instant sexual gratification. Yet dating in quarantine has been a surprisingly healing experience, as living in a public health emergency forces increased communication between partners around safety and sexual health.
Gymnastics is a sport notorious for its difficulty. Watching people flying through the air with grace and sticking a landing with poise fills the viewer with a sense of awe, and the amount of effort, training, and discipline required to compete in gymnastics is clear to see. Gymnastics requires more than just physical effort, though. It requires dedication to several practices per day, weight monitoring, unavoidable injuries, and taking harsh criticism. It is no surprise that in a sport so rigorous and disciplined, the culture is rampant with emotional abuse, physical abuse, and famously, sexual abuse.