Viral Video Showing Gang Rape Of 16-Year-Old Teenager In Brazil Sparks Protests And #EstuproNuncaMais Campaign — Police Hunt For 33 Men Involved

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A shocking video has surfaced online of a 16-year-old girl being gang raped in Rio de Janeiro. The case has led to the Brazil police hunting down the more than 30 men who are suspected of having taken part in the rape of the teenage girl. The country is in an uproar over the news after video and pictures surfaced on Twitter Tuesday, and the violating video seems to have been posted by the rapists themselves.

According to the Associated Press, there are conflicting reports of where the girl was at the time of the alleged gang rape. Local police have said that the 16-year-old was attacked by armed men while visiting a shantytown in western Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. However, other reports of the gang rape relayed that the girl was actually paying a visit to her boyfriend’s house in a poverty-stricken section of Rio, where she believes she was drugged, as her next recollection was waking up in a different location and surrounded by the over 30 armed men before losing consciousness once more.

A statement that the girl is said to have given to the police said that on Sunday the teenager woke up naked and wounded and simply went home. The reality of her gang rape confronted her again days later when the pictures and a 40-second video of the sexual assault were posted to Twitter on Tuesday. The image posted to Twitter showed the attackers posing next to the 16-year-old’s exposed genitals, and it received over 550 likes as well as positive responses, including emoticons like the thumbs up and smiley faces. The video of the gang rape was also widely shared and accompanied by an onslaught of misogynistic comments towards the teenager.

Some users of the social media platform reported the shocking viral video of the teenager, and the Twitter users who posted them have had their accounts suspended.

Arrest warrants have been issued by police in Brazil for the suspects, including the girl’s boyfriend. Brazil has already seen numerous protests against what activists in the South American country have said is a rape culture, and this posting has sparked an online campaign against it once more. The girl’s grandmother spoke to a local newspaper called Folha de S.Paulo about the gang rape of the teenager, saying that their family had watched the video clip and cried.

“I regretted watching it. When we heard the story we didn’t believe what was happening. It’s a great affliction. It’s a depressing situation. She is not well. She is very confused. This was very serious.”

Activists in Brazil have already begun calling for protests against the sexual assault on the teenager to begin over the upcoming days. According to BBC News, the anger and support of the people has surfaced under the social media campaign and hashtag #EstuproNuncaMais, which literally translates to mean “Rape never again.” Unfortunately, experts have said that in Brazil, many cases of rape go unreported because the victims fear retaliation along with blame and shame for the sexual assault they were forced to endure.

The shock and outrage Brazil is enduring because of the gang rape of the teenager is shared by the world over and many are using the hashtag #EstuproNuncaMais to carry their voice.

A collective of journalists on Twitter called Jornalistalivres retweeted a satirical image in support with an inscription, which said, “No to sexism.”

Artist Vitor Teixeira painted a picture of the blame, shame, and condemnation rape victims often endure, and the image can be found below. Clockwise from top right it says, “But look at her clothes,” “She deserved it,” “16 years old and already has a son,” and “Apparently she was on drugs.”

The United Nations group UN Women has also issued a statement asking authorities in Brazil to respect the victim — a violated teenager — during their investigation and not cause her further trauma by invading her privacy.

[Photo by Leo Correa/AP Images]