Gabrielle Union has been through a horrible ordeal and she opened up on The View recently about how she overcame being raped at gunpoint at Payless shoe store (where she was working) when she was just 19 years old.

Even though it was so traumatic she encourages others who have been through the similar situation to
She said, “When something catastrophic happens in life everyone rallies around you but it’s not for something positive and I hated that. I hated feeling like a victim, it makes you lazy. I wanted to embrace being a survivor. I was raised to be an independent woman. That’s the road I decided to take.”

She also added that she was lucky that the ordeal happened in an area where the police department and rape crisis center were quick to respond.

She said that she really she felt powerful when she sued Payless ShoeSource for negligence. According to Union, she had taken a summer job there and was just closing up when a man robbed the shop and sexually assaulted her at gunpoint.

But here’s the clincher…it was later releaed that her attacker had actually been a former employee of another Payless store which he had robbed, and where he had also raped another employee! After this incident, he was charged criminally and finally sentenced to 33 years in prison, and Gabrielle won her negligence lawsuit against Payless.

Her advice to parents?

She warned parents to check out the criminal history of businesses before sending their children off to work there. After she managed to find strength with the help of friends, family and counselors, she went onto college, interned at a model and talent agency and then entered the world of show business.

Wow, how brave of her to share this story! I had no idea.

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