Amber Heard is refusing to stay silent. Earlier this year, Amber filed for divorce from her husband actor Johnny Depp citing irreconcilable differences and made claims of domestic violence. Shortly after, disturbing photos and videos of the abuse were published online including news that Amber filed a restraining order against him.

In a PSA in collaboration with Girl Gaze, Amber shared an emotional recount of the alleged abuse: “It happens to so many women. When it happens in your home behind closed doors, with someone you love, it’s not as straight forward,” Amber said in the PSA.

“As a woman having gone through this in the public stage, in the public arena that I did it – I am able, I have a unique opportunity to remind other women not only does this not have to be the way it is, you don’t have to do it alone,” Heard said. “You’re not alone. We can change this.”

Amber has spoken unabashedly about her bisexuality, even claiming her being out might have cost her acting jobs. In 2015, Amber told The Times Magazine that she has struggled landing jobs since her public coming out in 2013. Still, Amber refused to stay silent about her bisexuality saying she neither wanted to hide her bisexuality nor be defined by it.

Yet her divorce was defined by her sexuality in the press. Soon after announcing the divorce, press coverage accused Amber’s bisexuality as a motivating factor. “It’s not wise to marry a bisexual,” an Australian talk show host mused. “Bye Bi, Amber,” read a salacious headline from tabloid The Sun. People magazine claimed that Johnny was possibly made jealous of Amber’s queer women friends worrying she would cheat.

The coverage that focused on Amber's bisexuality — rather than her claims of abuse — played into damaging bisexual stereotypes. Some media insinuated Amber was untrustworthy, that she had an affair, and brought the divorce upon herself. These insinuations stemmed from tropes on bisexuality, not facts. Bisexual actress Evan Rachel Wood, who just spoke out about sexual violence, took note and came to Amber's defense tweeting: “What does Amber being bisexual and having lesbian friends have to do with anything?”

Amber's abuse is reflective of the statistics plaguing the bisexual community. In 2013, the Center for Disease Control found that bisexual women face disproportionate amounts of violence. A staggering 61% of bisexual women have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime. In comparison, 44% of lesbian women and 35% of straight women experience that same violence. An earlier study by the CDC published in 2010 concluded similar results finding that bisexual women continually face higher rates of violence than both lesbian and straight women. Yet another study released in May found that bisexual women are most vulnerable for sexual assault on college campuses. Nearly 2 in 5 of every bisexual women face sexual assault over four years in college.

“Violence against women is not limited to actual physical violence,” Amber said in the PSA. “It is also about how we deal with it and how we talk about it in the media and our culture. Us taking responsibility for it is — that’s what really needs to change. We have to take responsibility for how we talk about these things. It’s the only way that people are going to feel comfortable coming forward, raising their voices, standing up for themselves. It’s if we change the system in place that keeps them quiet.”

Indeed, Amber spoke up about abuse in a culture that perpetuates violence against women. For Amber and other bisexual women, sexism has insidious ways of manifesting itself that perpetuates violence against bisexual women.

As she’s spoken up about her bisexuality, Amber says she’s dedicated to speaking up as a survivor. Taking the first step by advocating for herself and others, “Speak up. Speak up,” Amber urged. “Raise your voice. Your voice is the most powerful thing and we together as women standing shoulder to shoulder cannot, and will not, any longer, accept silence.”

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s divorce is expected to be finalized this week. Amber has committed to giving the full $7 million-dollar settlement to the ACLU and the Children’s Hospital.

Related: These Amber Heard Headlines Are Disgusting

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