Director: Johnna Janis & Sergio Myers
"I am Johnna Janis and 'Invisible Scars' is based on my life as a survivor of child sexual abuse. Many years ago someone shared their personal story of abuse, and urged me to begin focusing on healing from my past. Years later, this gave me strength and courage to begin my own healing journey." - Johnna Janis, Filmmaker
Although she projects strength and confidence, Johnna reveals the life-long struggles she has faced from the events that have haunted her since childhood. With the help of experts and leaders in the fight against CSA, she comes to understand how her emotional trauma has negatively impacted her self-image, her inter-personal relationships, and nearly all significant decisions in her life. Armed with this awareness, she explores tools and resources which are available to help CSA victims overcome the debilitating effects of their childhood experiences.
Every child deserves to be loved, and the opportunity to lead a happy and healthy life. Unfortunately, statistics show that childhood sexual abuse is rampant in our society: one in four girls and one in six boys will be sexually abused by the age of 18. There are currently somewhere around 40 million adult survivors of CSA; the odds are we all know someone who was targeted.
Those children who are victimized carry 'invisible scars' throughout their adult lives. Child sexual abuse is difficult for people to talk about, causing fear, shame, and anxiety, all of which promote silence. Predators rely on that silence to remain undetected and perpetrate their abuse, while imposing a lifetime of suffering on their innocent victims. The first step in the fight against CSA is to raise awareness of the devastating traumatic impact on its victims - to shatter the silence that protects the perpetrators. Invisible Scars opens that dialogue.
|