Stories untold – centring the voices of survivors of childhood violence and abuse

A survivor’s voice of a story untold

trust shattered, like fallen glass
by one I thought that would value my presence
abuse crept in, a deafening thief
stealing peace, and my innocence
as I pass others, their words cut deep
I bear the brunt of their bitter spite
a painful burden, a heavy weight to fight
the case is closed, the words are said
“No Criminal Capacity”
a verdict so icy and dead
no Justice served, no closure found
only pain and a Fourteen Year Old (14)
heart turned down
I felt betrayed, by the system too
now I rise as I speak my reality
the reality of,
a survivor’s voice of a story untold

This poem, written by a 14-year-old survivor of rape, is one of many stories collected by author Latifah Jacobs as part of her effort to provide a platform for the voices of those who have experienced physical or sexual abuse. The writer of the poem was assaulted by another minor. In late 2024, she was told the accused would not be prosecuted as his age meant he didn’t have “criminal capacity”.

Jacobs, an activist and founder of the Aurorah Kuils River Community Action Network (CAN) in the Western Cape, has long worked with survivors of violence. In her book, A Letter to my Perpetrator, she compiled the poems and letters of more than 30 people, some of whom had never shared their experiences openly before.

It was while sitting in on the trial of Mortimer Saunders, a 40-year-old convicted of raping and murdering three-year-old Courtney Petersen in 2018, that Jacobs first had the idea of putting together a book of survivors’ accounts. 

She recalled that at one point during the trial, the magistrate asked Saunders if he was okay.

“The deceased’s mother was there. Nothing was asked of the family, ‘Are you okay?’ No one… sitting there listening to the case was asked, ‘Are you okay?’ And on that day, it just struck me that everyone is so focused on the perpetrator. No one speaks of the trauma that the victim, the deceased, the family have gone through. And so I wanted to create a platform where survivors can speak out,” she said.

“I didn’t just want the platform for survivors to speak out, but also a physical thing, like this book, that can be presented... in a professional manner to perpetrators. Because, again, I wanted to change that thing where offenders come out and reoffend.”

Lost childhoods

Reflecting on her engagements with survivors of violence, Jacobs noted that many were harmed within their own homes. These children were often groomed from a young age and isolated from others who might notice something amiss.

“Because these children have been groomed from a very young age… they don’t know that what is being done to them is wrong,” she said.

“Too many of our children have lost their childhood, have not even experienced childhood. I’m thinking of cases in the likes of Manenberg, Mitchells Plain and Lavender Hill, where children are groomed from a very young age to [perform sexual acts] with men so that they can bring money into the household.”

Jacobs said that when a person was harmed and no one came to help, they often assumed there was something wrong with them.

“That is the mindset of many survivors. I always say to people, when they work in this space, they must be mindful of how they approach survivors and victims, because you can be a survivor for 20 years and you can still fall back into becoming another victim – to another man, to society, to a community... whether it’s at home, whether it’s at work, whether it’s when you’re out on the road,” she said.

“People see victims as people who are weak, but I’ve seen strong women who are vocal outside and are fighting for women’s rights, and they get home and they are beaten to a pulp.”

When working on compilations of survivors’ stories, Jacobs usually lets people approach her when they’re ready to talk, rather than seeking them out. 

“When a person opens up… [and] realises that they need to speak to someone… they feel empowered when they do. You just sense that,” she said.

Jacobs is currently collecting stories for a new book, The Horrors of Trust, that explores the experiences of people whose trust had been violated by someone close to them. DM

If you are a survivor of abuse and would be interested in sharing your story with Latifah Jacobs for The Horrors of Trust, you can contact her at latifahjacobm@gmail.com