Marie 🏳️🌈 · @NightOwlMarie
2nd Jul 2020 from TwitLonger
Anti sexually assaulted me on the casino floor during EVO 2017
Anti sexually assaulted me on the casino floor during EVO 2017. It was such a bizarre incident that I didn’t process it as assault until much later. I hesitated to post anything about it because I don’t know him as a person, and had no way of knowing if this was an isolated incident or a pattern of behavior. The courageous posts of other people he has hurt convinced me that it is time to go public in hopes that this won't happen to anyone else.
I first met Anti late Sunday night (Monday morning) at one of the bars on the casino floor in the Mandalay Bay. The bar was full of FGC heads that had walked over after the Twitch after party. My friend Bane and I were mingling, and Anti pulled up with Punk to chat me up. I knew of Anti from the internet, and I had watched Punk win 2nd in SFV earlier that day. As a fan it was cool to meet Punk and talk to him. Anti was trying to act like his wingman. However, I made it clear that I was not trying to flirt with Punk. (He was so young at the time, he couldn’t buy drinks.) When that conversation fizzled, I decided to go back to my hotel room, since it was already about 5 AM. As I was walking back to the elevators, Anti suddenly caught up with me. He must have run after me, as I was already about 150 ft away from the bar, and halfway to the elevators. With no warning, he kissed me on the mouth. I was totally shocked to the point where I don’t remember what I said or how I reacted, but it must have been weird enough that he walked away back towards the bar. I suppressed and minimized the event because I just wanted to go on with my life and keep pretending that the FGC was a cool community where I could feel safe.
However, seeing Anti again and again at different events in subsequent years started to make me feel so sick and violated. I saw him greeted with great enthusiasm at a womens’ fg meetup and had to flee the room because it made me so angry. I wanted to tell the truth in order to warn others, but without receipts, I understand that one story is hard to believe in isolation.
Even worse, I worried that if I posted my story, it would become unsafe for me to attend offline FG events, not due to Anti, specifically, but due to the fact that every person with a large following probably has a few vengeful fanatics. I worried that I’d always have to look over my shoulder for one of his followers who might decide to hurt me or my loved ones. I’ve always been a very independent person, and I never want to feel like I need a bodyguard just to exist in a public space.
I will always stand with and believe victims. I’m so grateful to all who have come forward before me, and I hope I can be stronger as your ally in the future.