Sexual assault: why reveal your name?

How Stanford’s “unconscious woman” became Chanel Miller.

An episode of the Beyond Today podcast, hosted by BBC Radio 4, titled "Sexual assault: why reveal your name?" was published on September 25, 2019 and runs 18 minutes.

September 25, 2019 ·18m · Beyond Today

0:00 / 0:00

Summary

On January 17 2015 at California’s Stanford University a young woman went to a party. A few hours later, she was found unconscious beside a bin. She had been sexually assaulted. To protect her identity in court, the victim was known as Emily Doe. We knew little else about her. We knew a lot about her attacker: he was Brock Turner, a student and swimmer, and his sporting prowess became part of his defence.The case caught global attention when BuzzFeed published Emily Doe’s 7,000-word victim statement. The post received 11 million views in four days, yet the writer remained anonymous. Until now. This month Emily Doe revealed herself as Chanel Miller, a 27-year-old literature graduate and artist. In this episode we speak to BBC reporter, Lauren Turner, who met Chanel to talk about why she wanted the world to know her name.In the UK, the rape crisis national freephone helpline is 0808 802 9999. In the US, the national sexual assault hotline is 1-800-656-4673. Further information and support for anyone affected by sexual assault can be found through BBC Action LinePresenter: Matthew Price Producers: Alicia Burrell and Harriet Noble Mixed by Nicolas Raufast Editor: John Shields

Episode Description

On January 17 2015 at California’s Stanford University a young woman went to a party. A few hours later, she was found unconscious beside a bin. She had been sexually assaulted.

To protect her identity in court, the victim was known as Emily Doe. We knew little else about her. We knew a lot about her attacker: he was Brock Turner, a student and swimmer, and his sporting prowess became part of his defence.

The case caught global attention when BuzzFeed published Emily Doe’s 7,000-word victim statement. The post received 11 million views in four days, yet the writer remained anonymous. Until now.

This month Emily Doe revealed herself as Chanel Miller, a 27-year-old literature graduate and artist. In this episode we speak to BBC reporter, Lauren Turner, who met Chanel to talk about why she wanted the world to know her name.

In the UK, the rape crisis national freephone helpline is 0808 802 9999. In the US, the national sexual assault hotline is 1-800-656-4673. Further information and support for anyone affected by sexual assault can be found through BBC Action Line

Presenter: Matthew Price Producers: Alicia Burrell and Harriet Noble Mixed by Nicolas Raufast Editor: John Shields