Harvey Weinstein rape victim revealed her name. The power in reclaiming your identity.
“Jane Doe 1,” one of Harvey Weinstein’s victims is revealing her identity.
Her name is Evgeniya Chernyshova. The former model and actress went public in a bombshell interview with The Hollywood Reporter published Friday. She said Weinstein raped her in a hotel room in 2013 and reported the crime to police in 2017.
“I’m tired of hiding,” Chernyshova, now 43, says. “I want my life back. I’m Evgeniya, I’ve been raped. This is my story.”
In December, Weinstein was found guilty of three of seven counts: rape, forced oral copulation and another sexual misconduct count involving Chernyshova, the only one to result in a conviction. The jury hung on several counts, notably charges involving Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the wife of California Gov. Gavin Newsom. The disgraced movie mogul, who maintains his innocence, was sentenced to 16 years in prison in his Los Angeles criminal trial last week, adding on to the 23 years he is already serving.
The significance of Evgeniya Chernyshova sharing her name
Chernyshova says she initially decided to remain anonymous after feeling shame and humiliation. She also said it was to protect her children. “But it was a horrible decision for myself because I’ve been cut off from everyone,” she explains. “It isn’t right to go through this hell alone.”
Experts say most survivors never report abuse, let alone name their perpetrators. One in six women has been the victim of rape or attempted rape, according to the Rape Abuse Incest National Network, and most never file a formal report. About 1 in 4 women have experienced sexual violence, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“Naming the person who sexually assaulted you for many survivors is a way of reclaiming their voice and power,” Laura Palumbo, communications director at the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, previously told USA TODAY.
and the healing power of naming names
For survivors, naming can be part of the healing journey
Disclosing takes time for many survivors. Many fear they won’t be believed, or that in speaking about the abuse publicly they may be retraumatized. Victims of sexual violence are at higher risk for developing mental health disorders, including depression and PTSD. Chernyshova said she battled depression and sometimes drank heavily.
“Imagine how difficult and psychologically damaging it is to feel like one of the most important things that ever happened to you, something that has shaped who you are as a person and your life in so many ways, one of the most important details about it, you’re not allowed to say out loud,” saidNicole Bedera, an expert in sexual violence whose research focuses on campus rape.
It’s normal, experts say, for survivors to over time share information they had not been comfortable sharing in the past.
“The decision to come forward in this bold way can reflect where this survivor is on their healing journey and the support system or resources available to them now,” Palumbo said.
‘I finally have a voice’
While Chernyshova says she still fears for her future, she acknowledges that she is proud to no longer hide.
“I finally have a voice and I can speak,” she says. “As much I was trying to destroy myself, to punish myself, I will do as much to rebuild myself. And to help other people.”
Revealing your name and publicly naming names is one way that a survivor can take back some of that power and reclaim their voice in a culture that frequently fails to hold abusers accountable. Though Weinstein is serving time, 975 perpetrators out of every 1,000 will never be incarcerated, according to an analysis of Department of Justice and Federal Bureau of Investigation data conducted bythe Rape, Abuse Incest National Network (RAINN).