Actresses including Amber Heard and Lena Dunham delivered a poignant tribute to the Stanford University sexual assault victim at the Glamour Women of the Year Awards.
The unnamed victim, known only as Emily Doe, was sexually assaulted by former student Brock Turner in January, 2015. On Monday night (14Nov16) she was named one of the honourees at the American magazine's annual awards bash for "changing the conversation" about sexual assault by publishing her impact statement, which she read out to Turner in court, online and for writing an essay about the tragedy in the publication.
Amber was joined by Lena, Freida Pinto and Gabourey Sidibe onstage at the ceremony, where they performed a reading of the court statement, according to Mail Online.
Amber, in a rare red carpet appearance following her divorce from Johnny Depp and subsequent domestic abuse allegations, praised Emily by saying, "Wherever you are, we know you are listening. Thank you for your words. Thank you for your courage. We carry it with us every day."
Lena grew emotional while referencing her own experiences with sexual assault and saying, "When I was assaulted I lived with guilt that I had been out, wasted in a party dress, and feared I was as inconsequential as I had been made to feel when I woke up on the floor... Emily's statement was a gift to survivors like me, one we will work very hard to repay through our honesty and our actions. Thank you Emily."
The Girls actress revealed she was a victim of sexual assault as a 19-year-old college student in her 2014 memoir Not That Kind of Girl. Lena also starred in a public service announcement about the issue with her Girls co-stars in June (16) and dedicated it to Emily Doe.
Emily, who has remained anonymous, didn't attend the ceremony and her award was accepted by Stanford Law School professor Michele Dauber on her behalf.
Turner was convicted of three counts of sexual assault and he was sentenced to six months in prison with probation in June (16), sparking outcry at the leniency of his punishment. He was released in September (16) after serving three months.
