Back in 2015, something went down which eventually led to me creating A Woman on the Internet as a place for women to talk about their experiences online. Since then, AWOTI has grown and changed in countless of ways, and I have grown and changed as well in the process, this is what I published on the AWOTI WordPress back in 2015 around the time AWOTI was created, to share what I experienced. I soon will be deleting that WordPress but I felt it would be important to keep this up somewhere where people could find and read it. Published on September 11th 2015
Thank you for your time.
Aurelie Sanhaji aka A Woman on the Internet.
Previous entry: Archive: The death threats of March 8th 2015
Published on September 11th 2015
For those who believe that I have “falsely” accused Roosh V of Rape Threats simply because a man only needs to say that a woman is lying, and her voice is reduced to nothing. Here is my report given to the SPVM, currently undergoing in order for his website to be investigated.
"Roosh V', real name Daryush Valizadeh is a 39-year-old American man from Maryland. He is a self-titled “pick up artist” who claims to be an expert on how to “pick up” and “charm” women. He gives “dating classes”, for which he is paid, where he teaches men how to approach women and “get laid”.
In truth, “Roosh V” Daryush is a self admitted rapist (he admitted to raping women in his books, and being aware that it was rape) and a predator (he nearly exclusively preys on women who are under the influence of alcohol and teachers to do the same in his classes), who is an active misogynist, anti-feminist and antisemitic.
His multiple articles and subjects go from him wanting rape to be legal on private property, direct quote: “make rape legal if done on private property. I propose that we make the violent taking of a woman not punishable by law when done off public grounds.” as well as many other invites to violence against women.
Daryush is currently on tour to promote his books and give classes and is coming to Montreal on the 8th of August and to Toronto on the 15th. In response to those news, multiple women have been trying to stop in, one of them even starting a petition to stop him from being let in by the Canadian Border Agency. The petition, which as of today has reached over 7,300 signatures, makes reference to section 319 of the Criminal Code of Canada, which states that:
319. 1) Every one who, by communicating statements in any public place, incites hatred against any identifiable group where such incitement is likely to lead to a breach of the peace is guilty of
(a) an indictable offence and is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years; or
(b) an offence punishable on summary conviction.
Which proves very clearly that what Roosh V intends to do is of a criminal nature, and so, should not be let in inside Canada for his intentions of doing criminal activities.
After being made aware of the situation and the petition, I have gotten in touch with the creator of the petition as well as the woman interviewed by the CBC in regards to the petition and Roosh V. In response, I, and other people, began planning a public and peaceful protestation in case the Canadian Border decides to let Daryush inside Canada, over 200 expressed their support. After I received information from a woman who was nearly hired by Daryush and others as a hostess for the event, but after realizing who the man is and what he does, she contacted me and gave me the information of the hotel where he plans to do his conference, an information he always keeps secret until the day before. The address we believe is the hotel where he plans to give his conference, where no woman will be accepted:
Address: Omni Hotel MTL
1050 Sherbrooke Street West
Montreal, Quebec H3A 2R6
Phone(514) 284-1110
Website: http://www.omnihotels.com/
By this point, Daryush and his followers learned of our protest began trying to threaten and intimidate me. In the night of the 1st of August 2015, at 6:54pm on Roosh V’s forum, a Canadian man posted a picture of me as well as my name, attached to it was the acronym “WYB” which both means “Would you bang?” and “Would you beat?”. My picture and name were posted multiple times as a response with some men making comments such as “In the face with a hammer” as response to the “Would you beat?” as well as, “Doc Palmer should be called, this lovely young lioness was even nice enough to paint a target on her chest. ” which clearly makes allusion to shooting me in the chest, to kill me.
You get the idea.
Multiple comments were made, listing ways to “legally” attack the people planning to protest the meeting of August the 8th such as by spraying us with water hose and things as such. Multiple men continued to insult me, either by calling me a man, or calling me a masochist, and so on. Allusions to attacking protesters after the protests were also made such as: “Just wait till they walk off from the crown and then kick their ass…. that’s what i do if people start shit with me in night club. “
“Roosh V”, Daryush Valizadeh, owner of the website, then posted a link to a picture I have done, with my consent, with a photographer, where I post nude, as well as another one I have done with another photographer, telling his followers that this was where they could see me naked, and where I didn’t look “demonic”.
He then wrote this comment, which is public to see “Would bang if…
I get the whole thing live on video from start to end with a direct feed to the local police as a false rape accusation preventive measure
Face down so I don’t have to see the tattoos
She doesn’t talk
Which makes it clear that he wishes he could sexually assault me, inviting his followers to even more hate and violence towards me. More degrading comments ensued, such as his followers calling me a “slut” and “mentally ill”, that I belonged in a mental hospital while posting more nudes of me as ways to degrade, dehumanize, intimidate and threaten me. Insinuations to sexually assaulted me is still going on, as a result of Roosh V posting owned pictures of me, and inviting and encouraging more violence towards me, while knowing of me.
Daryush Valizadeh is seen as a leader by many men who clearly suffer from serious problems of aggressiveness, violence and who threaten women with rape and assault. He has himself admitted to raping a drunk woman in Iceland in one of his books, while also admitting to knowing very well that it was rape, yet, as he said, he did not care. (All of this is available online). His classes, books and movement call for violence against women, claiming that women are lesser beings, sluts, who all fantasize about being raped, and how men need to “stop asking for permission” and how “feminism” is the end of men and many very dangerous ideologies. Many women have come forward with accusations of rape by men who follow his convictions, which proves how dangerous he is.
The spread of hate speech and the invite to violence against a visible group is absolutely illegal and a punishable offence under the Canadian Criminal Code, his venue not only needs to be cancelled, but he needs to be refused at the Canadian border.
Also; His invitation to violence, threats and intimidation towards me by the use of pictures of me, as well as my name, in a forum where his followers threaten me with murder, as well as the insinuations of sexual assaults he wishes he could follow through, is also, absolutely dangerous, and illegal.
This man is dangerous and has committed multiple hate crimes against women, as well as sexual assault he himself admitted to, I, as a woman, have every reason to feel my life and safety are threatened by this man and the ideas he shares with other men, he is a leader of his misogynistic, anti-feminist hate group and I ask that he is to be stopped.
UPDATE: In the following days, Daryush has publicly asked his followers to find my address, my work information, my family, and that information should be given to him, something that is completely illegal in Canada.
Because of this, my partner’s old address and phone number were published online, in the hope that I lived there, the proposal of harassment was done.
So the next time that a self-admitted rapist (Source: his books, his website, you name it) says that a woman is lying about accusing him of some sort of sexual crime, instead of calling her a lying, perhaps give her the same right to her own side of the story and truth that you would give to a man like that.
Note: As a response to all this, amazing Canadian women and men came together for a demonstration against rape culture. We had speeches, talks, and altogether, it was great. I met some great people, and some became good friends of mine. Roosh V, who had his first venue cancelled, and his second as well, and who ended up having dinner at a restaurant 2 corners from where he stayed, called his stay a victory.