In 1978 when I was 16 I was raped by a boyfriend and his friend.. I was terrified and after the rape I was forced to go back to his friend’s house where I had to spend the rest of the night. I eventually managed to leave and when I got home I told my parents what had happened and we went to the local police station. AND that’s where my nightmare really started. They didn’t believe me. I was called a slut . One of the officers said that I had made myself look like a slut by even being with two men late at night. My mum was there but she just sat there crying. The police kept on telling me I was lying for hours. One of them kept saying “tell us what really happened as my Sunday dinner is waiting for me” also they kept saying that “I’ve interviewed so many girls like you and it always turns out that they have consented and sometimes even helped put the penis inside them” … I felt ground down and desperate but in the end, after hours of questioning I felt I had no option but to change my story and pretend that I had had sex willingly. I was 16 and all I needed was an arm around me. Instead I was made to feel the lowest of the low. I went off the rails for a few years after that. I’ve made peace with my parents for their lack of support but I can never forgive those police officers.
Constabulary: Kent Police
Timespan: 1978
Did you report it to the police?: Yes
Your ethnicity: White British
Have you experienced suicidality due to this?: Thoughts/feelings
Are you disabled as defined under the Equality Act 2010?: No
