My friend had a brother who had a friend. I was only ten, he was already a teen. He was a jerk att first. One day, he pulled me aside to ask a question. Did I want to have sex wit him? I said no, and returned to my friend. She did not believe me. The whole day, he tried to touch me in inappropriate ways, he tried to remove my clothing, he tried to ask for sexual favors, and he kissed me and other stuff. He raped me later on. I was ashamed. He said he would kill me if I told. He tried to flirt with me on several occasions, but I was too scared to acknowledge him. The worst part was, my friend took his side. I did not talk wit her for a year after. All through the rest of elementary, I was severely bullied and considered suicide. They put me in a counseling program. Me and my ‘friend’ are no longer friends. And the guy who violated me? I have not seen him for many years now, and I hope it stays that way.
— Aurora, age 14
Dearest Aurora,
You are an amazing young woman. I know it is hard to believe sometimes, but when someone bullies you it says so much more about them and where they are at than it says about you. I may not know you personally, but I have no doubt that you are strong and brave and all of the qualities that someone would want in a friend. I hope you have come to find that there is so much for you to live for and that even though you have lived through terrible violations of your body and your trust, that you are worthy of all the love there is in the world. Keep on being the beautiful spirit that you are. Remember that you are the definition of strength and love and nothing anyone says or does will change that. I will keep you in my thoughts.
With love,
Alissa, Brave Miss World Team Member