Gisele Pelicot Addresses Victims 'in the Shadows'

Gisele Pelicot had a lot of people to thank following the conclusion of a rape trial that turned her into a global icon. The French woman spoke to the press shortly after her husband, Dominique Pelicot, was convicted of drugging and raping his wife and inviting 49 others to do so and sentenced to the maximum 20 years in prison. Gisele Pelicot acknowledged the months-long trial "was a very difficult ordeal," but said she "never regretted" her decision to waive her right to anonymity and go public. "I wanted society to be able to take part in this debate," she said, per the Guardian.

Pelicot thanked her lawyers, victim support groups, journalists, and the supporters who "gave me strength to come back day after day for this long." But she acknowledged other rape survivors don't have such support. "I'm also thinking of the many victims who are not recognized, whose stories often remain in the shadows," she said. "I want you to know that we share the same battle." She added, per CNN, "I have faith now in our capacity to carve out collectively a future where women and men can live in harmony, in respect and mutual understanding." (More Gisele Pelicot stories.)