Women around the world are outraged and in pain, as they mourn the death of 19-year-old ‘Black Lives Matter’ activist, Oluwatoyin Salau, who was reported missing in Tallahassee, Florida on Jun 6. Sources say that she was found dead alongside another woman, Victoria Sims, in the southeast part of the town over the weekend. However, the Tallahassee police have not updated their releases and are still calling her a missing person.
Earlier in the day on June 6, Oluwatoyin Salau had spoken up about a sexual assault experience in a series of tweets. She narrated her assault in the hands of a black man, who was disguised as a man of God. He offered her a ride and a place to sleep.
Anyways I was molested in Tallahassee, Florida by a black man this morning at 5:30 on Richview and Park Ave. The man offered to give me a ride to find someplace to sleep and recollect my belongings from a church I refuged to a couple days back to escape unjust living conditions.
— Oluwatoyin (@virgingrltoyin) June 6, 2020
Oluwatoyin Salau was an activist who spoke on race, police brutality, sexual assault and issues affecting women as a whole. She was very participatory in the ‘Black Lives Matter’ protests in Florida and inspired many through her words.
Her death is one of the many cases of gender-based violence against women, which have been rampant around the world in recent times. In Nigeria, in a span of three weeks, there were several trending hashtags demanding justice for six women ranging 11-22 years, who were either assaulted, raped or killed.
In South Africa over the past week, three cases were declared of women who turned up dead, including a pregnant woman found hanging from a tree with stab wounds on her body.
According to UN Women, an estimated 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical or sexual violence, not including sexual harassment. Studies show that a staggering 70% of women have at one point in their lives experienced physical or sexual harassment.
These figures are worrisome as many women do not have the means of defending themselves because in most cases, the assaulters are people they know. This has led to a lot of unrest among women who are increasingly worried about their safety in these times.
Women all over the world are calling for the end of gender-based violence, demanding a change and the creation of a society that values women. Gender-based violence is not new, but with the help of social media, it is being made public.
