TIME 2017 Person of the Year: The Silence Breakers!

Most of the time, revealing injustice and making a sound is our choice even if we don’t have the power or the responsibility of certain events.

Almost everyone agrees that famous people have perfect, easy and untroubled lives. It’s usually believed that when someone is known to other people, they will neither hurt someone or get hurt themselves.

Despite the current year, these prejudices are the main reason why some problems still remain unchallenged. To raise awareness in this issue, TIME magazine chose not one man but five women as the 2017 Person of the Year. All of these women refused to remain silent. On the right-hand side of the cover, we see an arm, which belongs to a victim who prefers not to reveal her identity. Unfortunately, it seems likely that she’ll be neither the first nor the last person to ask themselves “what if?” or blame themselves for what happened to them.

The #MeToo movement which was initiated to put an end to (or at least endanger) similar cases will encourage people to speak up. Let’s take a closer look at these five women, i.e. the Silence Breakers.

Taylor Swift, time.com

Taylor Swift

Singer. Sexually harassed by a DJ named David Mueller. Like other victims, she was forced by her lawyer to feel guilty by being sued. If things had gone that way, the justice wouldn’t be done – like many other examples in the world. But Taylor is one of the first ones to light the fuel.

Ashley Judd, Time.com

Ashley Judd

Actress. She states that she had been made an indecent proposal by Harvey Weinstein, co-founder of production company Miramax. Judd says that she left the scene but adds that for years she found no platform where she could share this disgusting incident. While sharing these incidents contribute to raising an awareness in the society, it also shows us that not all high-status people are virtuous.

Susan Fowler, Time.com

Susan Fowler

A victim to was ignored and was asked to change her job or remain silence after her complaint for sexual harassment by an UBER driver. What’s worse is that she continued to hear similar stories after she left her job.

Adama Iwu, Time.com

Adama Iwu

Sexually harassed in a crowded place in downtown Sacramento, California, Adama reached 147 women to make sure that justice was done. She’s one of the people who greatly contributed to shatter the perception that women are without power.

Isabel Pascual, Time.com

Isabel Pascual

A woman who was forced to remain silent after being sexually harassed and threatened. In addition to feeling insecure even at her own home, Isabel Pascual was forced to remain silent. It’s no surprise that she felt alone and powerless back then. Unfortunately, most people are surprised when people who experience such tragic things come out to confess.

Anonymous, Time.com

Anonim

Aside from living with other people’s choices, we can also feel second-hand shame. We may not have the option to speak out. This anonymous person is one of those who paid the price for not being able to share their haunted experiences with their loved ones.

A decision-making mechanism forces us to remain silent on certain things, or to behave us in a way they dictate. I believe that the “anonymous” story is the one that summarizes the similar situation other women are in. We’re harassed, silenced or feel forced to hide our identity as we look for a way out – and most of the time cannot. TIME announced these people as Person of the Year under the name the Silence Breakers to help people have a voice, and to raise awareness for putting the blame on the guilty rather than feeling self-embarrassment. These people may have been chosen 2017’s Person of the Year but their courage should be the ever-present norm.