"The Red Chevy"

In the essay “The Red Chevy” by Juli Bovard, she describes several of the most traumatic days of her life. She depicts not only the day she got raped, but also the days spent in the police station, the courtroom, and salvaging control of her life. After being raped Juli felt nothing she had ever felt before. However, soon after she gained back control of her life-or so she thought. After seeing her perpetrator again in the courtroom she felt the same dreaded feelings she had the day of the rape. She completely lost control of her life. In the end, she actually started living instead of just existing and I think she is a hero for that.

A lot of girls get raped each year and after it happened to Juli she just became another statistic. If this tragic event ever happened to me I don’t think I would have ever been as brave as Juli. Even during the attack she tried and tried to get out of the frightening truck. She may have stumbled along the way, but Juli eventually got herself together and in fact started living a better life she had before the attack. Anyone who has been raped could definitely look up to her and know that they are not alone. Sharing her story could not only help her, but it could help thousands of other rape victims who read it.

Thinking about this heartbreaking event optimistically, you could almost say that in reality it helped Juli. After the assault she led a better life and has helped so many people along the way. This disaster has in actuality has changed her life for the better. Also, while reading this story it made me think of the book, The Color Purple. The author, Alice Walker, was also raped and wrote about it. Both of these women went through similar catastrophes and they both shared their stories with the public, which in my book makes them heroes. Juli, by sharing her heart wrenching story with others, has impacted many lives and will continue to do so as long as her story lives.