🩶 Disclosure is a One-Way Street: How the Justice System Silences Victims (Again)
We live in an age where “justice” is branded as survivor-centered, trauma-informed, and fair. We are told that the system is there to protect us, to give us a voice, to hold those who hurt us accountable. But somewhere between the courtroom doors and the paperwork, something gets lost. Because when it comes to disclosure , justice remains a one-way street. As a survivor, you give everything. You hand over your witness statement, recounting your worst moments with forensic precision. You submit your Victim Personal Statement, laying bare the nights you couldn’t sleep, the therapy sessions you needed just to function, the way your child screams in his sleep because he nearly saw you dead. You give them your voice, your trauma, your fear, your vulnerability — all for the promise of justice. And the person who hurt you? They get to read it all. An evidence pack laid out like a coffee table magazine. But when they write their statement, painting you as unstable,...