Violet Paley was one of the five women to come forward and accuse James Franco of sexual misconduct in a Los Angeles Times expose last week.
She had shared her claims multiple times in the past, both publicly and privately, but her decision to speak with the Times changed things.
On the one hand, she was finally able to share with the world the traumatizing experience she allegedly had with the actor, but on the other hand she opened herself up to online attacks and endless criticism.
Those attacks took a turn however when the threats became increasingly violent, and when multiple people began inquiring about Paley’s address in posts saying they planned to murder her, the 23-year-old writer and director had no choice but to go to the FBI.
Spaeking up: Violet Paley accused James Franco of sexual misconduct in a story publish last week by the Los Angeles Times
Threats: She has since been subject to cyber bullying, online harassment and slut-shaming
Harassment: Paley, 23, was forced to go to the FBI last weekend however after death threats being made against her became a serious concern
It is a scary new reality for Paley, but one she tells DailyMail.com she was prepared for prior to coming forward.
‘The thing about women speaking out for their personal gain or career is absurd. I was scared to stand up to myself to him for that reason, and I knew once I came forward, this stress would be my life for the next few months,’ says Paley, who is dealing with this all while out of the country on vacation.
‘So many other survivors reached out to me – ones effected by James and ones effected by other men – and are still terrified of coming forward.’
Paley goes on to explain that it is the ‘harassment’ and ‘cyber bullying’ that these victims could be subject to that scare them into silence, along with the fear ‘that their careers will be destroyed.’
And according to Paley, the trepidation these victims have are all justified, especially in light of her recent experiences.
‘It’s heartbreaking, and a very legitimate fear,’ states Paley.
‘I’m scared of that too, but right now that’s not what I’m focusing on. I’m focusing on justice and supporting other females to share their experiences.’
That does not make the attacks any easier to deal with however, which attack everything from her looks and sexual history to her motives and state of mind.
Paley has been called ‘one ugly social justice warrior’ and told by another person she looks like ‘the bottom of my shoes, hardly anything a famous stud you want [sic] to “sexually assault.”‘
Others have labeled her an ‘irrelevant little b****,’ ‘horse faced piece of s***’ and a ‘horrible, bitter loser.’
There are also those who are offering comments on her mental state, with Paley being open about the fact that she had Borderline Personality Disorder when she was 18, with the diagnosis being removed after she received treatment in the form of dialectical behavior therapy.
Violet (above) said things got bad when Buzzfeed did not make the comment section of its Franco post private, leading many to comment using her social media handle
‘Ain’t nothing wrong with that but people with this disorder tend to lie or twist the truth. I had a friend who was (falsely) accused by her ex girlfriend for rape. She lied because of BPD,’ wrote one person on Twitter.
That individual then included grabs to support himself from a piece on the website Very Well, leaving out the first sentence which read: ‘Unfortunately, borderline personality disorder (BPD) is not a well-known or well-understood disease. Even so, many people believe lying is part of the disorder.’
Paley is trying to take it in stride.
‘I received most of the insults I expected to get on Instagram, that I’m too ugly for him, that I look like a slut, you wish he would touch you,’ she says.
‘After I made my page private it’s been easy to ignore.’ That has not been true of all social media platforms.
‘Twitter is an actual nightmare. I think Twitter has become 4Chan. It’s non stop so I’m just not looking at it for a while,’ explains Paley.
‘A lot of bot accounts that are trying to paint a picture that I am an unstable, sociopathic attention seeker.’
Doing her best: ‘I received most of the insults I expected to get on Instagram, that I’m too ugly for him, that I look like a slut, you wish he would touch you,’
There has also been issues with website’s allowing for comments, which is what led her to contact the FBI.
‘Before Buzzfeed turned off the comments on their Instagram post about it, I got hundreds of messages and this is when the death threats started getting serious,’ says Paley.
‘People were planning in the comment sections how they’re going to find me and kill me. One guy sent me my address. They said that I was gonna go missing and you’d see on the news to some of my friends.’
This is when she says her family stepped in and urged her to contact authorities.
‘My friends and family wanted me to contact the FBI. I didn’t think it was too serious until the address thing so I agreed. I’m out of the country so my dad contacted them and is working with them,’ says Paley.
This is now her reality, and the reality of many other victims who have come forward to share their stories.
As far as personal gains go, Paley was unable to name any than the peace of mid she experienced by sharing her story and inspiring others to do the same.