Clara Castaño’s pregnancy, which resulted from rape, was kept secret, but the story became public. The Brazilian actress, who gave her son up for adoption, now opens up about the various forms of abuse she endured throughout the process, namely from those who had a duty to protect her.
Actress Clara Castaño, whom Globo audiences are used to seeing as cute Paulinha in Amor à Vida or little Clara in Amor Eterno Amor, touches Brazil with a terrifying story. A 21-year-old girl shared with subscribers that she survived a rape, as a result of which she became pregnant, discovered a few days before giving birth. The case, which by law must remain confidential, was solved, and Clara ended up publicly justifying the possibility of giving the child up for adoption.
“This is the most difficult report of my life. I thought I would take this pain and this burden with me alone. I have always kept my affective life a secret. pain. I can’t be silent when I see people colluding and creating versions of the repulsive violence and trauma I’ve endured. The letter was posted on Instagram.
In the message, the young actress recalls that she was not in her city or near family or friends when she became a victim of the crime, and explains that out of “shame” and guilt, she did not report this to the authorities at that time. “I had the illusion that if I pretended it didn’t happen, then maybe I would forget it, get over it. But that didn’t happen,” he continues, adding that the next morning he took a pill and some testing, trying “as much as possible” to continue living, focusing on family and work.
“But even while trying to lead a normal life, the damage from violence accompanied me. I stopped sleeping, I stopped trusting people, I let the shadow take over me. Endless sadness that I’ve never felt before”he says, saying only the family knew what happened.
“The facts at this point are enough to hurt me, but they don’t stop there,” she writes, eventually revealing she knew she was pregnant when she was already at the end of her pregnancy. “It was a shock. My world fell apart. My menstrual cycle was normal, as was my body. I did not gain any weight or belly. At that moment of the exam, I again felt insulted, again guilty,” she shares, regretting that the doctor who was watching her showed no sympathy. “I was not a woman pregnant by will and desire, I was subjected to violence. And even so, she made me listen to the heart of a child, said that 50% of the DNA is mine and that I will be forced to love it there “remember.
The actress explains that the child she was expecting was the result of devastating abuse, and that she did not have the emotional conditions to give her love and care. Recognizing her inability to play the role of a mother, she made a decision that she considers “more worthy and humane” by giving the child up for adoption, which required psychological counseling and various legal procedures. When the baby was born, Clara says she was treated disrespectfully by doctors who had a “legal obligation of confidentiality” and ended up being approached by several journalists who were informed of the pregnancy.
One of them promised not to publish it, but in the end the news was made public, and “with it came a thousand false information and cruel and false conclusions.” “You have no idea how much pain I feel. Everything I did was aimed at protecting the life and unborn child. Every step is documented in accordance with the law. The child deserves the care of a loving family, properly qualified for adoption, that she has no memory of such a traumatic event. And she doesn’t need to know that it was the result of such brutal violence.”.
After Clara was “first raped by a man”, Clara was “raped repeatedly by so many other people” who condemned her. “The truth is cruel, but this is a real story. It’s the pain that tears me apart,” she says, saying she is supported by her family and takes care of her physical and mental health.
“I didn’t want to go public with my story, but I hope that at least what happened to me will help women and girls not feel guilty or ashamed of the violence they endure. Giving a child up for adoption is not a crime, it is an act of the greatest caution. I will try to restore myself. And I’m counting on your understanding.”ends.
An influential witness comes at a turbulent time when, especially in the Americas, abortion rights are under threat. In Brazil, the case of an 11-year-old girl who became pregnant after being raped subjected to pressure from the judge andnow – at the time to be investigated – to promote pregnancy has made, in recent weeks, the agenda of newspapers and television. And in the north, in the United States, recent repeal of the constitutional right to abortion the decision, passed by a conservative majority in the Supreme Court, sparked demonstrations across the country and sparked divisions around the world.
