Abigail Breslin Reveals Why She Didn’t Report Her Rape

After recently revealing that she was sexually assaulted, actress Abigail Breslin has opened up about the “many reasons” why she didn’t report her rape.

“First off, I was in complete shock and total denial. I didn’t want to view myself as a victim so I suppressed it and pretended it never happened,” she said in her latest Instagram (below) about the sexual assault.

The “Dirty Dancing” remake star was responding to a negative comment on her original social media announcement — made during Sexual Assault Awareness Month — which read: “Reported rapes are the only rapes that count.”

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In her response posted over the weekend, Breslin went on to detail other reasons that prevented her telling the police.

“I was in a relationship with my rapist and feared not being believed,” she said. “I also feared that if my case didn’t lead anywhere, he would still find out and hurt me even more.

“Third, I knew how hurt my family and friends would be after finding out and I didn’t want to put them thru that,” she continued.

In that prior post, the 21-year-old had included a graphic by the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) and the National Sexual Assault Hotline concerning the number of rape perpetrators that don’t see jail time for their crimes.

Some commentators argued that many rape charges stem from “false accusations.” Others tried to break down the infographic, questioning how many of those counted had evidence or if a rape that goes unreported even counts.

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According to the “Scream Queens” star, however: “To say that rapes reported are the only rapes that count, contributes to the ideology that survivors of unreported rape don’t matter. It’s unfair, untrue and unhelpful,” she said. “It’s like you got a black eye from getting punched in the face, but because you didn’t call the police, you didn’t really get a black eye.”

“Unreported rapes count. Reported rapes count. End of the story.”

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“I won’t pretend it isn’t something I struggle with,” Breslin said. “I still have flashbacks, I still get nightmares, I still jump when somebody touches me unexpectedly, even if it’s my best friend tapping me on the shoulder.”

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