Being the friend who brings it up means inviting a friend into a conversation, and showing that we welcome them to talk about what might be going on.

When someone is experiencing trauma, it can be easy for others to jump to offering solutions or attempt to fix the situation directly. But many times the most important thing we can do is simply listen and acknowledge the person's pain and humanity.

Just as a patient can appear healthy yet suffer from an invisible injury or illness, our communities may appear vibrant yet be affected by instances of domestic violence. Healing and protecting our communities is up to all of us.

Women and girls were too often expected to sacrifice, obey, and lose. But no longer. We need our brothers and fathers to be champions of our sisters and mothers so that everyone can pursue the path that is right for them.

The ones closest to us should be the ones who treat us most tenderly. Their care should not be conditional—not dependent on what we achieve, how we look, or how obedient we are.