With the U.S. election now less than two weeks away, a new group campaigning for Vice President Kamala Harris‘ presidential bid is putting sexual violence at the top of the ticket.
Survivors4Harris, founded by Zachary Mallory, is “a coalition of sexual abuse survivors and people whose lives have been affected by sexual abuse.”
In the past week, the group has taken out an ad in The New York Times in a bid to highlight former President Donald Trump‘s alleged record of sexual violence. The ad was a letter signed by Tarana Burke, Octavia Spencer, Sophia Bush, Gloria Steinem and Chanel Miller. Trump has denied allegations of sexual violence on multiple occasions.
The group then hosted a Zoom call to mobilize support, where Ashley Judd, Anita Hill and Hadley Duvall spoke. Multiple identity groups have been formed for Harris this year, including White Dudes For Harris and Women Wednesdays For Harris.
Survivors4Harris
Judd, the actress who was the first to come forward with allegations against convicted rapist Harvey Weinstein said on the call that “sharing our stories about why we are voting for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz” is an “invitation to healing from patriarchal wounding, male entitlement to female bodies, is healing our bodies, and our stories which are subjugated to male dominance, especially white male entitlement.”
“Our bodies are our evidence, and our stories are our public leadership,” Judd said, adding, “Our stories help create policy. The administration we are going to vote in, will have a different culture.”
“Kamala Harris has been a steady voice,” Anita Hill, the lawyer and educator said on the call. “A voice for progress in the face of heinous attacks on just about everything that has to do with her and even more on things that have nothing to do with her.”
“She’s been attacked about her competence,” Hill said. “Even something as simple as whether or not she had worked at McDonald’s as a teenager has become fodder.”
Hadley Duvall, an American activist, also spoke. Duvall, who was 12 when she was impregnated by her stepfather after years of rape and abuse, has campaigned alongside Harris this year. Speaking about Harris, Duvall said, “She wanted me to know that she heard me. She cares,” Duvall said.
Speaking about founding the group, Mallory told Newsweek, “We know what the election season brings. It brings a lot of questions of who I vote for that represents my values and represents my voice.”
“The choice is clear,” he said. “As a survivor of sexual and domestic violence, I believe in advocating for change. I created @Survivors4Harris because I felt that I needed to do something to advocate for voices of the most underrepresented, and the most underprivileged. I know what’s at stake.”
Trump has been accused of sexual abuse and misconduct by multiple women over the years, allegations which Trump has denied. In May 2023, Trump was found liable for sexually abusing and defaming the journalist E. Jean Carroll.
Trump called the verdict “a disgrace.”
Mallory told Newsweek that “@Survivors4Harris will continue amplifying survivors of sexual and gender-based violence. We will continue to show up, and advocate for policies that affect our lives, and our communities. The future is bright, and we remain optimistic, even after the election.”
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