After a long day of work and school, many people look to destress somewhere. Whether it be going home and taking a nap, reading a book, exercising or even going out to get a massage, we always need to destress.
However, recently one of those destressors have turned into a site of worry. Massage Envy, one of the largest chains of spas in the entire country is being thoroughly investigated after numerous women have reported being sexually assaulted by the workers. One woman took it upon herself to call the spa and complain about her experience. However, the company did not do anything to end the assaults or stop potential future assaults. Furious, the woman turned to the police for help.
Massage Envy is currently being accused of over 180 neglected sexual assault incidents that they knew about but refused to take action on.
As a young woman, I urge those who have been victims of sexual assaults to come forward. What happened to you is not okay, and it is not your fault. No one asks for this to happen to them and I can assure you that you are not alone in this. There are more women out there who have been victims but are too scared to come out with their story.
Sometimes it does take that one brave woman to inspire the rest to come forward with their story. The woman who reported the assault said the massage therapist lowered the sheet covering her torso and started performing oral sex on her. Horrified, the woman panicked and covered herself as he started to apologize, urging her not to tell anyone. He told her he didn’t know what came over him and that he had never done that before. We now know that this man was lying because he had already sexually assaulted another woman in the past in Maryland.
It is never enough to simply say that you are “sorry.” The woman you sexually assaulted lost her peace of mind and it will take her years to get it back. A woman never “Asks for it,” nor does she deserve it. Abusers like this man need to start being held accountable for their own actions and it starts when women are no longer scared to report their incidents.