Essay
I clicked “Add Friend.” He accepted within minutes. Stunned, I wondered if he had forgotten raping me. Defriending my rapist on Facebook.
Read MorePublished by Marie Claire AIDS + Hepatitis C = Love How we found each other amidst addiction, ongoing sobriety, and life-threatening illness. “One girlfriend slipped a mickey into my coffee,” he said, “and when I passed out she poured lighter fluid on me and all my belongings and torched me.” We were sitting at Le Singe … Read more
Read MoreIn the speed of your TV remote’s fast-forward author Susan Shapiro will tell you anything you want to know. She walks into a room with a whoosh mark behind her. Though born in the Midwest, she’s more of a New Yorker than the average, well, New Yorker. Within five minutes Shapiro will tell you where she’s … Read more
Read MoreToday I am speaking at a class because my New York Times essay, “Defriending My Rapist,” is a required reading for the Victimology course at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York (CUNY). The course is led by Jan Yager, a professor at the Department of Sociology. Yager has an MA in criminal justice and … Read more
Read MoreThis Bill Cosby scandal has triggered memories. Before my rape, I had voluntarily drunk rum and smoked a few hits of pot. Afterward, I was afraid people wouldn’t believe anything I said because I was high.
Read MoreSeven years ago, on 07/07/07, I was at the Live Earth concert in London. As I watched videos of Al Gore talk about recycling in between sets by The Black Eyed Peas, Snow Patrol and Foo Fighters, I learned how to dispose of waste properly. And not just in the kitchen — in my personal … Read more
Read More“I realize that I’ve been hypnotized.” — Jimi Hendrix Where do self-destructive impulses come from? I had romanticized images of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin but they were dead long before I heard of them. The first time I shot heroin was down at St. Mark’s place in 1978. I was a 17-year-old aspiring artist … Read more
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