Linor Abargil
The
“Brave Miss World” Interview
with
Kam Williams
Beauty
Pageant-Winner Talks about Traumatic Rape and Dedicating Her Life to
Helping Other Survivors
A
national heroine in Israel, Linor Abargil was crowned Miss World in
November of 1998. A month and a half before the Miss World
competition, she had suffered a brutal rape while modeling in Italy.
After the subsequent trial, which resulted in a 16-year prison
sentence for her rapist, young Linor made a public statement before
the entire nation of Israel, counseling other women to not be afraid
of reporting their rapes, and to seek punishment for the
perpetrators. She then returned to a private process of healing but
resolved to one day do something about the crime of rape.
Currently,
Linor is highly-sought internationally as an inspirational speaker on
the subject of combating violence against women. Here, she talks
about Brave Miss World, a very moving documentary in which she tells
her own story and reaches out to other survivors.
The
Emmy-nominated documentary is screening on Netflix, amazon, iTunes
and all digital platforms. And her website has become one of the
leading resources for survivors worldwide.
Kam
Williams: Hi
Linor, thanks for the interview.
Linor
Abargil:
Thank
you, Kam.
KW:
As a former Miss World, what do you think of the mistake Steve Harvey
made recently crowning Miss Colombia instead of Miss Phillippines in
the Miss Universe pageant?
LA:
That
was crazy! It looked so unreal, that I started thinking it was
staged… They let poor Miss Colombia stand on stage with the crown
for an eternity. I think they should have just let her win, despite
the mistake. It was so embarrassing.
KW:
I'm
sorry about your stabbing and rape. Why did you decide to make a
documentary about the assault?
LA:
Ever
since I was raped and crowned Miss World, women all over the world
approached me to say the same thing happened to them. Knowing that I
had been through it, too, and that I wasn’t afraid to talk about
it, helped them to not feel so alone, and to know it wasn’t their
fault. I always wanted to make a documentary that would reach many
more people than I could in person. But it took me ten years to get
the courage to do it. My friend Motty Reif always encouraged me to do
it, and he believed that it could be very impactful. Then we found a
great team of women filmmakers to help me tell the story: director
Cecilia Peck and producer Inbal Lessner
KW:
What
message do you want people to take away from Brave Miss World?
LA:
If
something happened to you, it wasn’t your fault. You don’t need
to be ashamed, and don’t stay silent. The only way to heal is by
getting it out in the open. Find a friend you trust, a family member,
a professional person, or an anonymous hotline. But don’t keep it
buried inside, because it will eat you up. No matter what you were
wearing, or where you were, or what you did, it wasn’t your fault,
it was the rapist’s fault.
KW:
You
were only 18 at the time, and the perpetrator was your travel agent,
a person you had every reason to trust. Did that betrayal affect your
ability to trust other people?
LA:
I
still trust in the goodness of people. But I learned that there is
evil in the world and I have never felt safe from danger in the same
way that I did before. It took away my innocence.
KW:
The
attack occurred just 7 weeks before the Miss World contest. Did you
consider withdrawing from the event?
LA:
Yes,
I did. But I had to represent my country, Israel, and also my mother
thought it might help get my mind off the terrible thing I had just
been through. I never thought I would win. Israel had never won. I
didn’t even bring enough dresses! But I think the judges saw a girl
who was very determined, and I must have had a quality that stood out
from the rest.
KW:
I know
that your mother was a pillar of support. Still, it must have been
hard to summon the courage to pursue the prosecution of your
attacker.
LA:
I
was very lucky that from the moment I called her that night, my
mother gave me complete support and encouraged me to go straight to
the police and the hospital. I always knew that he needed to pay for
what he did. I would never have backed down from seeing him put
behind bars. But, I was only 18, and it was very hard to go through a
very public trial during my year as Miss World.
KW:
He was
found guilty and sentenced to 16 years. Do you think you would've
been able to get a conviction without the DNA evidence?
LA:
The
DNA was everything. He had been accused of rape and tried in two
different countries prior to my case, but he had been able to
convince judges that he was innocent. He is a very skillful,
manipulative predator. So, the DNA evidence in my case was very
important. If some of the women he raped before me had had the same
evidence, maybe he wouldn’t have been free to rape me in Milan. But
I was able to put him away for 16 years, the longest sentence ever
given for rape in Israel at that time. It should have been for life.
KW:
How did
the trauma shape your reign as Miss World?
LA:
I was
not able to fulfill all of my duties, because the trial was very long
and difficult. Also, I was in too much trauma to travel. I needed to
be close to home and my family. I was not the best Miss World. But I
think that today I have given real meaning to the crown.
KW:
Why did
you decide to study law when you originally planned to major in
communications?
LA:
I
thought my life experience would be useful as a lawyer. I was always
interested in the law and, although I went back to school late, I
graduated with honors and began work in the Tel Aviv District
Attorney’s office, the same place where I went for help when I was
a young girl who had been the victim of a brutal rape crime.
KW:
You
have devoted your career to empowering other rape victims to find the
courage to speak out and to confront their attackers. Do you find
being an activist fulfilling?
LA:
I
believe
that it’s my mission. I’m committed to making a difference to
survivors of rape, and encouraging them not to blame themselves, and
not to stay silent. Sometimes I wish I had an easier mission. It
brings up a lot of trauma for me to do this work, and to empathize
with all of the women, men, boys and girls I meet, and who write to
our website [www.bravemissworld.com].
But yes, it’s very fulfilling. When I hear from survivors who tell
me how much shame they felt for so many years until they heard me
speak or saw my film, or that they never had the courage to speak
about it before, I know that they are on the way to healing.
KW:
What
inspired you to embrace Orthodox Judaism?
LA:
I had
a very good, simple life growing up in Netanya. Then I became Miss
World, and I had a lot of success in modeling and acting. But I was
missing something. Now I have a deep connection to God and to the
meaning of life. My faith gives me a lot of strength, and I feel that
I was living in a superficial way before. Now, I’m much closer to
God and to the important things in life.
KW:
Do you keep a kosher kitchen? What is your favorite dish to cook?
LA:
I look
forward to baking the challah every Friday. I love Shabbat!
KW:
Was
there a meaningful spiritual component to your childhood?
LA:
My
parents were secular, but I had aunts and uncles who were religious.
KW:
Ling-Ju Yen asks: What
is your earliest childhood memory?
LA:
I'm
at my grandmother's house with my sister and cousins. We spent a lot
of time at my grandmother's house, because my parents were working
long hours, and she helped raise us. I have the best memories from
that period. My grandmother was the love of my life, and she passed a
year ago. I miss her every day.
KW:
Who
else loved you unconditionally during your formative years?
LA:
Both
of my parents, and my sister and brother.
KW:
Is there any question no one ever asks you, that you wish someone
would?
LA:
I've
been asked so much, there's hardly anything that I have not talked
about, but if they didn't ask, there's probably a good reason. I
would really rather keep some things to myself.
KW:
Sherry
Gillam would like to know what is the most important life lesson
you've learned so far?
LA:
Even
if you’ve been through something really hard, you have to get up
every day, put a smile on your face and go out into the world. Then
one day, that smile will be there by itself, not because you put it
on.
KW:
The Viola Davis question: What’s the biggest difference between who
you are at home as opposed to the person we see on the red carpet?
LA:
I'm
much funnier at home.
KW:
When
you look in the mirror, what do you see?
LA:
A
child... a woman… a good person.
KW:
If you
could have one wish instantly granted, what would that be for?
LA:
I
would ask that everything will be good in the world. No wars... the
sick would get better... just for everything to be good.
KW:
The
Tavis Smiley question: How do you want to be remembered?
LA:
As
someone who wasn’t afraid to speak up, no matter how hard it was.
KW:
Finally,
what’s in your wallet?
LA:
A
Siddur [prayer book] and antibiotics. I just recovered from a very
bad flu after performing 54 stage shows in a month.
KW:
Thanks
again for the time, Linor, and best of luck with the film.
LA:
Thank
you for being interested, Kam! I hope anyone who has survived a rape
or knows someone who has, will go to our website
[http://www.bravemissworld.com].
We
have over two million visitors and everyone who posts their story
gets personal responses from a very supportive community. I’m very
proud of the reach of the website and of the film, which is now
available all over the world on Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, and
everywhere.
To
see a trailer for Brave Miss World, visit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4l2D91KrdQ
To
order a copy of Brave Miss World on DVD, visit:
http://www.bravemissworld.com/buy
No comments:
Post a Comment