Aly Raisman and 100 other women athletes took to the ESPYs stage for a powerful moment.
On July 18, the ESPYs presented the Arthur Ashe Courage Award to a group of incredible women.
The award is presented to those whose bravery in the face of adversity "transcends sports," and recipients include the likes of Caitlyn Jenner, Muhammad Ali, Billie Jean King, and Nelson Mandela.
This year, the award was presented to more than 100 athletes who were abused by former USA Gymnastics national team doctor Larry Nassar.
With Olympic gold medalist Aly Raisman, gymnast Sarah Klein, and softball player Tiffany Thomas Lopez at the helm, the "sister survivors" took to the stage to accept the award, speak about the pain of not being heard, and make clear that the abuse they'd experienced can never happen again on any scale.
Photo via ESPN/YouTube.
"The ripple effect of our actions, or inactions, can be enormous, spanning generations," Raisman said in the speech. "Perhaps the greatest tragedy of this nightmare is that it could have been avoided."
"All we needed was one adult to have the integrity stand between us and Larry Nassar," Raisman added. "If just one adult had listened, believed and acted, the people standing before you on this stage would have never have met him.”
Klein declared that protecting children and people at risk must be the priority.
"We must start caring about children's safety more than we care about adults' reputations," she said. "If we can just give one person the courage to use their voice, this is worth it."
Lopez made it clear that it was an opportunity to understand that conversations about sexual abuse must not be something society tiptoes around, that victims come from every background. "Tonight, we stand here and it feels like we’re finally winning."
The award shows that this time of reckoning is here to stay and that the way we collectively handle and discuss about sexual assault must change.
The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements have been represented at the Golden Globes and The Oscars, sparking a well-spring of solidarity in the entertainment industry. The fact that it's moving outside the most mainstream awards shows is proof that the way our society — and its most visible industries — are treating sexual harassment and assault is changing for the better.
Though there's still so much work to be done, this ESPY award is a reminder that we're moving towards a future where abuse won't be tolerated. And that survivor's voices will be heard.
"We may suffer alone," Raisman said as the group of women on stage clasped hands, "but we survive together."
The speech was preceded by a powerful video that served as poignant evidence of the courage the athletes had to exhibit in order to have their voices heard and change the status quo. Watch it below:
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."