When I was growing up (16-18yrs), it was found out that the boys in our area had created a private Facebook group, literally with hundreds of boys in it, sharing intimate images of their girlfriends or girls in the area, all without their knowledge or consent. Many of these girls were underage. It was like they were swapping collectible cards or something and used as a bonding experience between them, at our expense. It was like they didn’t even view us as human. I got quite depressed after hearing about this and it made me very afraid of men. It was disgusting that this was happening and that so many boys were involved – it was so normal to them and exposes just how embedded this culture is. I think growing up with pornography had completely de-sensitized them and re-wired them to see women as objects to be exploited. Alot of the girls who were exposed never fully recovered. They either moved away or became much quieter/smaller versions of themselves.

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