These are some of the experiences of child sexual abuse shared with the Truth Project by victims and survivors. All names and identifying details have been changed.
Download a PDF sample of accountsread full account of Maximuss experienceMaximus says ‘At night I used to cry, knowing what was going to happen’
Maximus is still greatly distressed by memories of the sexual abuse he suffered in children’s homes and on the streets.
‘We were taken into care because we needed to be cared for, not raped and abused’ he says.
read full account of Harlans experienceWhen he told his adoptive father that he was being abused, Harlan was told men had sex ‘to keep warm’
Harlan was born a few years after the end of World War II, and adopted when he was a baby.
He was sexually abused by a teacher, and his adoptive parents refused to take him seriously when he told them.
read full account of Amoyas experienceAmoya says ‘My wings are broken but I am going to mend them’
Amoya was sexually and emotionally abused by her stepfather.
For decades, she has felt unsupported and ‘shut down’ by her family, but she says by speaking to the Truth Project ‘I am taking back the power’.
read full account of Jemmas experienceJemma thought that abuse ‘was normal, her fault and was what happened in every family’
Jemma was sexually abused by her father and also by a Sunday school teacher.
When she went to her mother for help, she was told to ‘get used to it’.
read full account of Glorias experienceThe cruelty and abuse Gloria endured as a child made her determined to love and protect other people
For reasons she has never understood, Gloria lived for seven years in a convent that was a children’s home.
She gives an account of cruelty by sadistic nuns, and one in particular who also sexually abused her.
read full account of Dorothys experienceDorothy says ‘It’s like my memories don’t exist. That’s worse than the abuse!’
Dorothy describes how from a very young age she endured fear and humiliation, along with physical, sexual and emotional abuse.
As an adult, she feels she is still suffering an equally painful ordeal because her account has not been taken seriously.
read full account of Alexandrias experienceIt was clear to Alexandria that girls were likely to be blamed for the wrong-doings of the boys
Alexandria grew up in the 1970s and 80s in an industrial community with strong masculine traditions.
The prevailing view in her strongly religious family was that the boys ‘could do no wrong’. The reality was that some of Alexandria’s brothers sexually abused her and her sister.
read full account of Danas experienceDana says people should not be afraid to challenge those who have ‘status’ if they suspect abuse
Dana was not believed when she told people in authority that her father was sexually abusing her.
She thinks this is because he was seen as respectable and upstanding in the local community.
read full account of Sophies experienceSophie thought she was in love and that she was special when she was sexually abused by a teacher
Sophie came to the Truth Project to talk about the grooming and sexual abuse she experienced as a teenager by her teacher, and the failings of the teaching staff and other adults to intervene.
She describes growing up in a ‘mollycoddled’ household with a very close extended family who lived close by and saw each other daily.
read full account of Miyannas experienceMiyanna says men should not be allowed to teach girls alone in mosques
Miyanna was born into a strict Muslim family.
A teacher at the mosque sexually abused her, but she was afraid she would be punished if she spoke out.
read full account of Rubys experienceRuby says ‘You can be different people in a lifetime, I think, if you are given the chance’
As a young girl Ruby suffered cruelty and abuse in her home at the hands of her stepfather. She describes how she has worked at recovering and says she feels lucky.
She says ‘It is really important to get people to voice things ... there is a need to recognise that you are a victim but that it isn’t your fault’.
read full account of Siennas experienceSocial workers said Sienna had a ‘big imagination’ when she tried to talk to them about abuse
Sienna was sexually abused and raped by a neighbour when she was very young.
The perpetrator ensured she stayed silent by threatening to get her into trouble with her violent stepfather.