Brenda Tracy, a woman who was gang-raped at twenty-four years old by members of a football team, has given a powerful speech to the University of Nebraski football team.
She was invited to speak by the coach of the football team, Mike Riley, who was once coach of the Oregon State University team.
Two of the men who attacked her in 1998 played for Oregon State University’s football team, and after the incident occurred, their only punishment was to be suspended for one game, because, according to Riley, they were ‘good guys who made a bad choice’.
Tracy described details of her rape in the speech – that she was floating in and out of consciousness, that they were pouring alcohol down her throat, and that the woke up with a ‘used condom on her stomach’.
As Brenda put it in her speech, she once ‘hated this man more than her rapists’, referring to Mike Riley. She told reporters after the speech: “You could literally see the whole room turn and look at Coach Riley… It was intense. I saw them all look. I could feel it.”
According to USA Today, she went on to say: “This is what accountability looks like. This is what transparency looks like. This is how we get things done.”
Back in 2014, Mike Riley showed remorse for not taking more action against the perpetrators. When asked by The Oregonian if he would ever get Tracy to speak, he said: “That would be a compelling talk. A real-life talk. Instead of just talking about rape and sexual assault, actually having someone talk about how things can change for everyone in a moment like that.”
Two years later, it ended up becoming reality. Thought Brenda was still angry at Mike Riley, she decided to do the speech, for all rape victims.
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