My name is Lavinia Masters from Lewisville, Texas. I was sexually assaulted
when I was in the 6th grade. I was attacked in an act that would be unimaginable
were it not still seared in my memory.
After the assault, I spent hours at the hospital. All I could do was lie
there as doctors put my purple night gown and underwear into evidence
bags, plucked out my hair, drew my blood, and photographed my body.
They stored all of those hours and pain in a rape kit and threw it on
a shelf where it sat, untested, for 20 years.
Wendy Davis heard my story and thousands of others just like mine -- and
she went to work to fix the problem. In 2011, Wendy led the effort to
close the rape-kit backlog. Today, her law ensures that evidence will
no longer sit on a shelf.
But when Greg Abbott had a chance to help, he sided against a rape survivor.
You may have seen the new advertisement about Abbott’s ruling in
that case.
If you haven’t, you can view it here.
As voters, it is our job to hold our elected officials accountable. This
ad empowers me and survivors like me with the information we need to make
the right choice in November. Now I see the clear stakes in this election,
and I know that my vote can hold Greg Abbott accountable.
There’s only one candidate I trust to be our next Governor. And
that’s Wendy Davis.
Thank you for listening.
Lavinia