I would like to preface this post by saying that it is not about who to believe.

That could be the subject of an entirely different post, one in which I urge you to do your own research instead of falling for TikToks or fake YouTube videos. Or maybe one in which I point out the overwhelming amount of evidence built up against Johnny Depp (who is somehow being painted as a hero despite his proven track record of assault).


But I promise I'm not actually trying to get you to choose a side between these two people: I'm asking you to consider the implications of this trial (which has dominated the news cycle for months), on the larger public.

Here are the pertinent facts: Amber Heard wrote an op-ed in 2018, an op-ed in which she came out as a survivor of domestic violence. She never named the perpetrator. Think about that for a minute. She never once mentioned Johnny Depp's name. And yet - despite a UK court ruling that corroborates that conclusion, and any number of character witnesses who attest to Depp's beating his wife - he won his defamation case against her in the U.S.

What does this tell abused women everywhere? That #MeToo was wrong. Don't speak up. You have no right to come out about domestic violence, even if you don’t name the perpetrator. If you speak up, you can be punished. If you claim to be a victim, your behaviour will be on trial- and god forbid you don’t act like society’s ideal of “an abused woman.” Then, like Heard, you can lose everything.

This set new precedent for domestic violence cases, and you better believe one thing - vengeful men WILL be using it to punish women who dare come forward.

Just ask Marilyn Manson. https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/johnny-depp-marilyn-manson-libel-lawsuit-abuse-allegations