There is nothing worse than getting stuck in a helpless situation and having to endure hardships just for sake of a loved one. Famous television host, Ellen DeGeneres had to go through such a phase as a teenager.
DeGeneres stated that she was sexually abused by her stepfather at the age of 15 or 16 while her mother was away for cancer treatment. Recalling the details of the horrific incident in an interview with David Letterman, she said, “My mother had had breast cancer right after they got married,” according to Vanity Fair.
She added, “So she had a breast removed, and they had a very, very sexual relationship, which was also very uncomfortable for me. And he told me when she was out of town that he’d felt a lump in her breast and needed to feel my breasts because he didn’t want to upset her, but he needed to feel mine.”
The 63-year-old further stated that her stepdad continued to using her mother’s illness as a ploy to exploit her. However, it reached a breaking point when he decided to break into her room.
DeGeneres recounted, “He tried to break my door down, and I kicked the window out and ran because I knew it was gonna do—it was gonna go more to something.”
Despite the trauma she was undergoing, DeGeneres decided against burdening her mother with the news. Instead, she kept it with herself for years.
“And I didn’t want to tell my mother, because I was protecting her and I knew that that would ruin her happiness,” said the host. However, years later, she disclosed it to her mother who was still married to the same man. At the time, Betty was unwilling to believe her daughter. So, she continued in the relationship for another 18 years.
Eventually, she broke u with the man “because he’d changed the story so many times.” Though DeGeneres had initially opened up about the abuse in 2005, she decided to elaborate it as a warning to all women and girls.
“It’s a really horrible, horrible story and the only reason I’m actually going to go into detail about it is because I want other girls to not, you know, ever let someone do that,” said DeGeneres. She added, “What most women do is, we just don’t feel like we have a voice. We just don’t feel like we’re worthy, or we’re scared to have a voice and we’re scared to say ‘no’….When I see people speaking out, especially now, it angers me when victims aren’t believed because we just don’t make stuff up. And I like men, but there are so many men that get away with so much. It is just time for us to have a voice. It’s time for us to have power.”
Following her interview, her mother said that she regretted the way she responded to her daughter when she first told her about the abuse. She even encouraged other parents to lend ear to their children.
“I know now that one of the hardest things to do is speak up after being sexually abused. I love my daughter, and I wish I had the capacity to listen to her when she told me what happened. I live with that regret, and I wouldn’t want that for any other parent. If someone in your life has the courage to speak out, please believe them,” said Betty, according to Today.
Leave a reply
