Sall Grover was living the dream in Hollywood as a screenwriter. Young, Fun, and Female, most of her screenplays revolved around romcoms; Love, and Laughter.
After almost a decade in the industry, Sall learned the horrible truth that, for many women, life is more like a horror-film than a romantic comedy; males felt free to grab you in business-meetings, and attempt to rape you at their leisure.
Thanks to the #metoo movement, founded by Tarana Burke, and magnified by Alyssa Milano during Rose McGowan and Ronan Farrow's exposé on now-convicted serial-rapist Harvey Weinstein, women around the world finally have a spotlight illuminating their very-real concerns and experiences, without being silenced by people in positions of power, or rudely told to "shut up" and "get over it".
Women are telling the truth about sex-based violence.
But should women have to share such horribly personal horror-stories just to be heard?
Shouldn't a simple NO, be enough?
It never is.
Disillusioned and traumatised by her tenure in Hollywood, Sall came back home to Australia to visit with her mum, and over a few Rosés, Giggle was born.
You can read their cute creation story in Sall's Open-Letter to The Media.
Sall wrote this letter after a male journalist publicly called her a slur for not including males in her female-only app.
Sall wanted to make sure there were no misunderstandings, and to have her side of the story heard.
Giggle is a safe-space for females who are getting their first phones, and their first periods, to grandmothers who are also learning to use their first (or second!) phone.
This app is a celebration of females from all countries and walks of life, who are looking for a job, a room, a new friend or gym-buddy, a travel-companion, a compassionate ear, biological wisdom or experiences, career advice, a support network - or just someone to share a giggle with.
It's a safe-space that's free from the male sexual-predators we all know exist online, in the real-world, and in majority.
Whatever will men do if they lose access to little girls and young women to gaze at, stalk, exploit, threaten, and harass online?!
Males have ALL the apps in the world - why is one that's just for women the subject of such disdain, and the target of abuse?
Oh that's right.
Because it was created by women, for women.
No amount of logic, graphs, statistics, polite-requests, or NO's will ever abate the wrath of the internet.
Try not to let the corporate-funded media dominate the narrative, and become complicit in the systemic abuse of women who just want spaces where they can rest, remember, reconnect, and rejuvenate before getting back out there, into the war that is women's daily life.
Violence against women doesn't go away if we refuse to acknowledge it exists.
Men have to stand up for and support women, too; otherwise "all men" are a threat to women's safety.
Men have to stand up for and support women, like Ronan did for Rose.
Sall Grover should be commended for her ingenuity and "comeback and thrive" story. Instead, she continues to be abused by men in positions of power that - as Ronan Farrow proved in his book, "Catch & Kill" - they frankly do not deserve.
They manipulate and control the narrative - and there are no happy endings for women in those stories; girl's dreams really descend into living nightmares.
Who will speak for them?
Share This Article
