The actress offers suggestions on how best to be an ally to victims of trauma.
Charisma Carpenter is offering her thoughts on how to help victims of abuse.
Last month, the former Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel actress alleged via social media that creator Joss Whedon was abusive and harassing on the set of their TV series. A number of former co-stars publicly supported Carpenter, as well as backed up her claims. ET has reached out to Whedon for comment.
On Thursday, in a guest column titled "How To Be an Ally of Victims of Abuse" for The Hollywood Reporter, the 50-year-old actress offered suggestions on how to help those who reveal past trauma, and thanked people for their overwhelming support.
"Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been overwhelmed by phone calls, emails, public comments and DMs of support in response to an open letter that I had posted on social media about my personal experience with an abuse of professional power," Carpenter began. "The truth is that while the inundation of comments and calls were rooted in good intentions, some still fell short."
"It dawned on me that many may not know how to be an ally or to best support a survivor of trauma. I’m regrettably all too familiar with experiencing physical and mental abuse," she continued. "I was terrorized at the hands of an abusive family member when I was a child. And I’ve had a gun held to my head at point blank range while barely escaping rape. And based on the open letter I wrote, you now know about the psychological abuse I endured while acting on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel."
She went on to explain that her claims were not to unpack her trauma but "a wake up call and a call to action" in an "effort to foster change." Carpenter said that many other people have gone to her to share similar stories, and her goal is to "educate anyone reading this on how to be an ally and support a person who has survived trauma in its many incarnations."
Carpenter then gave 17 suggestions on how to help others cope with trauma and be an ally, including "don’t tell people to 'rise above,' 'just move on, it was a long time ago,' 'get over it' and 'forgive and forget' abusive experiences."
She also noted not to ask others to "share details of their trauma beyond what they are willing to volunteer," "believe others when they tell you they are hurt," "don't play devil's advocate for an abuser," be empathetic and "don't blame people for staying in abusive situations," among other bullet points.
Carpenter's original statement about Whedon came nearly two months after Ray Fisher publicly accused Whedon (along with producers Geoff Johns and Jon Berg) of misconduct on the Justice League set. The actress credited Fisher for helping her come forward with her own story.
Sarah Michelle Gellar, David Boreanaz, Anthony Stewart Head, Eliza Dushku and more spoke out about Carpenters allegations.
"I am here for you to listen and support you. Proud of your strength," Boreanaz tweeted, with Carpenter acknowledging his support in front and behind the scenes.
"I know you're there for me, David. I appreciate all you've done to demonstrate that support privately as well. Especially since Wednesday. -Thank you so much," she responded.
RELATED CONTENT:
