Breanna Stewart Finds Outpouring Of Support After Opening Up About Abuse
By Paul Doyle, Hartford Courant
In 1,663 words, Breanna Stewart revealed the most personal of stories.
Stewart's piece on The Players' Tribune recounted her experience as a childhood sexual abuse survivor. It's a deeply personal essay which Stewart hopes will inspire others to tell their stories.
And simply by being so open, Stewart is already making a difference.
"The word I would use is courage," said Dr. Laura Saunders, a child psychologist at the Institute of Living. "It takes courage to release the secret. Once you release the secret, it's not a secret anymore and it's a step toward decreasing the isolation and decreasing the shame."
Stewart's essay, published Monday morning, sparked an outpouring of reaction on social media. The former UConn All-American and current WNBA All-Star shared the story on her Twitter and Facebook accounts at 7 a.m. and the story spread quickly, with an array of figures commenting with tweets: UConn coach Geno Auriemma, former UConn guard and Stewart's WNBA teammate Sue Bird, soccer legend Abby Wambach, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, and more.
The tweet from Auriemma: "Stewie was 4 time Final Four MVP. Today she is MVP for life. Love you Stewie."
The essay's title is a nod to the hashtag that has gone viral in response to sexual harassment and assault allegations against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein. Actress Alyssa Milano started the campaign on Twitter two weeks ago and the hashtag has spread.
In fact, Stewart writes that she was inspired to share her story after reading Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney's account of sexual abuse. Just as Maroney inspired Stewart, Stewart could act as a catalyst for others.
It's one thing to write #MeToo, meaning you can relate to it, but it's a whole other issue to write such a deeply personal story," Saunders said "These kinds of personal accounts, I think, are very powerful and they're very powerful for young people, even adults to read, and realize they're not alone."
Laura Cordes, executive director of the Connecticut Alliane to End Sexual Violence, is encouraged by the magnitude of the #MeToo movement, including Stewart's decision to share her story.
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director