We have had all of you on our minds recently: it might be the energy of “going back to school,” or the accumulation of so many stories shared by 17-year old girls, but we are thinking a lot about you. We are thinking about our collective responsibility to create and manifest hope – not a superficial hope, but a hope grounded in truth-telling.

Last month, a Twin Falls jury verdict found a 40-year-old male teacher not guilty of having sexual intercourse with his 17-year-old female student, this despite the fact even that the teacher admitted to doing so and that it is a crime under Idaho statute. He did so with a student, like all other students, who deserved care, protection, and guidance.

The jury attempted to invalidate the inherent worthiness of this 17-year-old girl, and all other girls and women and people who are gender nonconforming, because they believed her value was less than his. It is this belief that fosters a culture of violence.

To the 17-year-old Twin Falls student, now 18, we do not know your story. We do not know if you feel you were harmed, or if you will come to believe you were harmed years from now. When anyone experiences sexual exploitation or assault by someone who has power over you, like a family member or teacher, it can take time to sort through the complicated feelings and begin a healing journey. You might experience depression, drop out of school, or engage in self-harm. It is not unusual to be shamed by others. We hope this did not and does not happen to you. But, from the comments on social media, odds are you have wrongly been the target of shame and blame.

Here’s the thing: it was never your fault. You did not deserve to be exploited, even if you wanted to have sex with your teacher. Your teacher, 22 years older, was solely responsible for his failure to understand that students were entrusted in his care.

We have collectively failed you and the thousands of girls in Idaho have been or will be sexually assaulted this year. We cannot change our culture fast enough to protect you.

In the recent Netflix documentary, Hannah Gadsby: Nanette, forty-year old Gadsby talks about Pablo Picasso’s sexual intercourse with a 17-year-old girl he described as in “her prime.” “No 17-year-old is ever in her prime,” says Hannah Gadsby. “A 17-year old girl is just never, ever in her prime. EVER. I am in my prime. Would you test your strength out on me? There is no way anyone would dare test their strength out on me – dare! – because you all know there is nothing stronger than a broken woman who has rebuilt herself.”

You are not alone. #MeToo has demonstrated the strength of girls and women who have rebuilt themselves. This is resilience in action. And 17-year-old girls, while we continue to work to change the culture, create and manifest hope with your very being.