"It's a fine line": An autoethnographic exploration of alcohol-involved sexual assault.

Abstract

When I was an undergraduate student at the University of Waterloo, I was sexually assaulted at a party. My experience was dismissed and discredited by friends, peers, and the police. I spent the remainder of my undergraduate career wrestling with the aftermath: coming to terms with what had happened to me, navigating psychological distress, and attempting to rebuild my life and my identity. As a graduate student at the University of Waterloo, I have dedicated my time to understanding violence against women as a social phenomenon. With the foundation of knowledge I have built, I return now to my own experience to unpack, explain, and analyze what happened to me, why it happened, and what knowledge I can draw from it. By situating myself as both the participant and the researcher, I aim to invite readers into a dynamic storytelling experience that inspires both thought and action. Over the past few years, sexual violence has become a more common topic of conversation in public arenas. Largely as a result of the #MeToo movement, awareness of the pervasive and damaging nature of sexual violence is perhaps at an all-time high. However, as is seen the continued high rates of assault and harassment perpetration, we still have a long way to go. Insightful conversations around sexual violence and assault remain necessary and valuable to all of society, but especially to women and non-binary folks who suffer victimization most often.