Calls to National Rape Hotlines Spiked Dramatically After Trump Tape Leak

Calls to local and national rape crisis hotlines have spiked in the days since the now-infamous Trump tapes leaked.

Donald Trump
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Donald Trump

Donald Trump might have dismissed his comments bragging about sexual assault as "locker room talk," but women dialing in to national rape crisis hotlines have made it clear the words were triggering, a cruel reminder of abuses they've suffered.

The Washington Postreported that just a week and a half after it published a leaked video tape of Trump saying that, as a famous man, he could indiscriminately "grab [women] by the p****," calls to local and national rape crisis hotlines have spiked. The stories of the women who have since publicly accused Trump of assault, as the paper said, empowered more women to share their own stories with advocates who would listen.

The Post reported:

The Rape Crisis Center Hotline, a D.C. resource that typically receives between 75 and 100 calls each week, saw a 20 percent increase after The Washington Post published a 2005 tape on Oct. 8 that showed Donald Trump bragging about grabbing women’s genitals without their permission.

Dozens of Republican lawmakers, leaders and officials have walked back support of the candidate after footage was leaked of the candidate bragging his fame is "like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait. When you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab them by the p****.”

Multiple women have claimed that Trump made unwanted sexual advances on them, fondling them in both public and private spaces. His campaign and its surrogates have called the claims "unfounded" and have worked to deflect public attention from them. 

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