GK Barry, a social media personality who gained fame on TikTok, has shared that it took her ten years to understand that police were incorrect to discourage her from reporting a rape that occurred when she was a teenager. Barry, whose real name is Grace Eleanor Keeling, recounted the experience on Paul Brunson's "We Need To Talk" podcast.
Barry, 27, stated that the assault happened during a week of work experience in her second year of college. She was reporting to an older man who initially offered her a ride to work. Instead, he drove to a deserted park, where he allegedly demanded oral sex before later locking her in a room and raping her.
She described approaching the police to report the incident, but a female officer allegedly told her there was "no point" in proceeding because the event had occurred some time ago and Barry had admitted to "flirt[ing]" with her attacker at the start. The officer reportedly advised her to leave it alone. "I think you'd just be best to leave it. It's your choice, but I just if I was you, I wouldn't," Barry recalled the officer saying.
It was not until approximately ten years later that Barry fully recognized the severity of the police officer's response. "It's taken me this long to fully be like no that was actually really wrong," she said.
Brunson highlighted the officer's statement, emphasizing that "flirting is not consent."
Barry also spoke about common misconceptions surrounding sexual assault, explaining that she initially envisioned rape as an aggressive act by a stranger in a dark alley. She noted that her understanding was challenged when the assault involved someone she knew and who had initially been kind to her. "Rape can come in so many forms. It can come from one of your best friends," she stated, explaining her desire to speak out to help others understand the varied nature of sexual assault.
Following the assault, Barry continued her work experience. On her final day, the attacker reportedly sent other staff home, then took her to a room, locked it, and assaulted her again. At the time, she said she blamed herself and felt the work experience was a critical moment as she was repeating a college year after failing her GCSEs.