Georgia Harrison, a former Love Island star, has described how her “life changed” forever after ex-boyfriend Stephen Bear posted a private video of her online without her knowledge.
Georgia, who bravely renounced her right to anonymity in order to assist others who might be going through the same fate, has spoken out about how the ordeal affected her. She has chosen to use her platform to push for better laws governing image-based sexual abuse in the year that followed.
As part of her latest project, the 30-year-old has fronted the series Georgia Harrison: Porn, Power, Profit. The ITV documentary, which takes place across two episodes, will see Georgia look into the issue of deepfakes and image-based sexual abuse.
She stated, “What we really wanted to do was find out who is responsible for the posting of image-based sexual abuse that’s still out there,” when discussing what to expect.
The TV personality discovered that she had been secretly filmed having consensual sex with Bear in 2020, and the footage was later released online without her knowledge.
After being found guilty of voyeurism by a majority verdict and guilty of two counts of disclosing private sexual information and films with the intention of distress, a jury unanimously found him guilty of voyeurism and sentencing him to prison for 21 months in March 2023. Bear received a restraining order while receiving the sentence, was told not to contact Georgia for five years, and was required to sign the register for sex offenders.
Georgia described how she felt “violated” when she recalls how much of an impact the footage’s publication without her knowledge had on her life. I had to endure fear that this would be revealed and that my family would be aware of it. The worst feeling you can possibly imagine was exactly like it. I felt violated, I felt embarrassed – I hated myself for a really long time”, she said.
Meanwhile, according to Judge Christopher Morgan, the victim, Georgia, was made to pay legal costs as a result of Bear’s illegal behavior. He added that Bear posting the CCTV footage had a “devastating” impact on her.
Georgia said she could now “start embracing the future,” and in the moving documentary Revenge Porn: Georgia v. Bear, she left viewers teary-eyed. She broke down as she discussed the devastating effect it had had on her life.
“I don’t know what to do anymore. I’ve had my life forever changed, and I’ve had my dignity and privacy eroded. I’ve lost self-respect, I feel guilt, I feel ashamed – and he is just laughing, joking, having the time of his life”, she said.
Months later, in October 2023, the Love Islander-turned activist said that life had been an “absolute whirlwind” following Bear’s conviction as she used her platform to campaign for change around the issue of image-based sexual abuse. Georgia has spoken to MPs and organized events as part of her work, winning the 2023 Glamour Women of the Year Award.
I feel so empowered and that a lot of things in society are changing because I went from a low to a high. She said, “I believe we are at a turning point where women will be greatly protected.”
Georgia added that she was “so proud” of her accomplishments since the release of her tell-all documentary. Making a law amendment was her most proud moment, she continued. I wanted to do everything I could for them because I had read other women’s stories so much.
“I had a success story, but so many people don’t,” I said. When I got told the law was changing, that was monumental for me, I’m still taking it in. “
Disgraced reality star Bear was released from prison in January 2024 after serving just 10 and a half months of his sentence. He was also required to pay £5, 000 in compensation to Georgia for emotional and financial distress in March 2024. This money would be given to HM Treasury and distributed to police charities.
In August last year, Georgia released her memoir Taking Back My Power: Our Bodies. Our Consent in which she reflected on her nightmare”. It’s a hard read, “she admitted to the Mirror.
I had many traumatic experiences that came very close together, but I’m hoping people can be inspired and inspired to learn how to navigate their journey. I also have a sense that the end is near and there are resources to help those who go through those difficult times. And once you do there’s always something on the other side. “
Georgia’s new documentary is her least significant contribution to campaigning, and she hopes it will inspire real change five years after the start of her ordeal. She told ITV that she was optimistic that it would “change the world” so that anyone who has been a victim of revenge porn won’t have to look up every day and wonder if it’s still available.
She continued, “If you can prevent the people at the bottom from investing in the advertisement at the bottom, they won’t continue to post unconsensual footage because they won’t be earning any money from it.”
*Georgia Harrison: Porn, Power, Profit airs tonight on ITV2 at 9pm
Source: Mirror
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