'Gisèle Pelicot, your legacy will live on forever.'

In September of 2024, the world watched on as a 71-year-old French woman stood outside a small courtroom — head held high — and passed on a message that would become a rallying war cry for survivors of sexual violence worldwide.

"Shame must change sides."

Two months on, Gisèle Pelicot has become an unexpected advocate worldwide for survivors of rape by drugging, choosing to forgo her anonymity to ensure that her ex-husband and the men who he recruited to rape her whilst drugged, were held to account for their monstrous actions.

On November 19, she took the stand one last time to make her closing statement.

"I've lost 10 years of my life that I'll never make up for. This scar will never heal," she stated. "It's time that the macho, patriarchal society that trivialises rape changes."

As I look at Gisèle's face, the parentheses of lines around her delicate mouth, I find myself aching for all she has experienced. Not just the ways in which she has been violated, but the absolute betrayal at the hands of the person who was meant to protect and care for her.

In all my years of advocating on sexual violence, this has been one of the hardest stories to hear. As both a survivor and advocate, I find myself struggling to hold back tears — because at the centre of Gisèle's story, is a level of societal evil that is hard to comprehend.

A callousness that makes it impossible not to cry, whilst thinking of all that this woman, mother, daughter and beloved grandmother has gone through.

Image: Supplied.

Now, four years on from that day in 2020, when police revealed to Gisèle the 'barbaric' images of her unconscious body being abused by her husband and countless other men, she stands courageously tall, ready to hear the verdict of the trial.

At no point in the past four months has she refused to back down; instead, she has attended every court hearing, and has forced every one of her abusers to view the harrowing footage of their most evil acts.

She has held each man accountable, day in and day out. And most powerfully, during every attempt from the defendant's team to discredit or place the shame back onto her shoulders, Gisèle has fought back.

"Don't talk to me about sex scenes," she stated during a court hearing in September. "These are rape scenes."

As a survivor who chose not to take my abuser through the court system, it has been particularly harrowing to watch as lawyers, media, and members of the public have attempted to victim-blame Gisèle for the actions of rapists.

Alongside the overwhelming confusion and trauma we carry as survivors — alongside cultural, financial, or language barriers that may prevent us from taking our abuser to court — one of the most common reasons we do not proceed through the 'Justice System' is precisely because of this victim-blaming.

More so, with less than 10 per cent of rapes ever resulting in a conviction, we are afraid that our time, money, and energy will be for nothing.

Watch: Grace Tame on the power of abuse survivors' stories. Post continues after video.

When you add to this the reality that 'evidence' of rape is often near impossible to provide ("Oh what? You didn't pop your phone onto video and record what happened?"), it's easy to understand why many of us never even get the chance to seek justice.

It's one of the reasons Madame Courage — as she's affectionately known — has refused to back down. "I'm speaking for every woman who's been drugged without knowing it. Many women don't have the proof. I have the proof of what I've been through," she stated.

Like many survivors, Gisèle's drive to be a voice for those of us who were drugged and abused, but never able to seek justice, is the reason she is our hero.

To this day, I still don't know if I was drugged by the man who sexually assaulted me. I will never know if the heaviness in my limbs, my inability to move, and the overwhelming sense of confusion about what was happening, was a result of my nervous system being stuck in the freeze response, or something more sinister.

At the end of the day, however, it makes no difference; because like Gisèle and millions of others, I carry the scars regardless of my abundance or lack of evidence.

Image: Supplied.

As I sit here, looking at Gisèle's photo, I think of the legacy that she has left.

Particularly, the women who, like Gisèle, are in their 70s and 80s, and have lived their entire lives under the weight of misdirected shame.

I think of the women – our mothers, aunties, and grandmothers – who grew up with the message that they needed to 'submit to their husband's needs.' Beliefs that non-consensual sex in marriage can't be defined as rape.

I think, too, of the male survivors. Those who were made to believe that, 'Men can't be raped' — a dangerous lie that has driven far too many men to take their own lives.

On Thursday, December 19, a month on from her powerful closing statement, a panel of five judges sentenced Dominique Pelicot to the maximum 20 years in jail, as requested by prosecutors.

The court also found all 51 defendants guilty, with sentences ranging between three and 15 years behind bars.

On the verdict, Gisèle said, "I now have confidence in our ability to collectively seize a future in which each woman and man can live in harmony with respect and mutual understanding. I thank you."

Regardless of the result or the jail sentence, I know that Gisèle's body and brain will forever carry the memories and invisible scars of what she has survived.

It will forever impact her beautiful children and grandchildren, who will experience the ripple impact of trauma that comes from a man's decision to rape.

But I also know, as someone who has found the ability to thrive despite severe adversity, that Gisèle has done the one thing that is most important in her ability to keep moving forward. She has refused to carry her abuser's shame. And she has chosen to transform her shame into strength in order to save and impact more lives.

Like Gisèle, we may walk with our pain every day — but when those toxic coils of shame rise up, when they tell us that we are bad, that we are too damaged to ever be loved, that we are to blame for what was done to us, we need to stop, close our eyes, and picture the fierce brown eyes of the woman who took on 70 alleged rapists, in front of the entire world, and remember: We are not to blame.

The shame was never ours — it was theirs. And that is where we will place it from this day on.

While I never took my own abuser to court, I do wonder from time to time if he's seen my face in the media. How he feels, every time I speak on another podcast or share my story in the news.

But it doesn't scare me – instead, it's a fuel to keep speaking out.

Every time I speak the truth, I think of him shrinking with shame as he is reminded, every single day, of what he did to me.

That is my justice. And for the rest of my life, I will live by Gisèle's bold words: "I have nothing to be ashamed of."

Thank you, Gisèle. You are a hero to us all.

Jas Rawlinson is an award-winning speaker, survivor-advocate, and creator of the 'Red Flags 101' program. Order her books here, or connect with Jas via Instagram or her website.

If this has raised any issues for you, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, please call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service.

Mamamia is a charity partner of RizeUp Australia, a national organisation that helps women, children and families move on after the devastation of domestic and family violence. Their mission is to deliver life-changing and practical support to these families when they need it most. If you would like to support their mission you can donate here.

Feature Image: Supplied.