It's important to understand that Stockholm Syndrome is not a weakness or a choice. It's a human response to prolonged trauma and captivity. What Cassie endured was a nightmare, and it should be perceived as such. However, misogyny has men and, unfortunately, women downplaying the horrors she experienced as if wealth changes the idea of abuse and who's considered a victim.

"Make the wrong face and the next thing I knew I would get hit in the face," Cassie Ventura testifies. "He would say, 'Watch your mouth.'" The constant tension left her anxious, never knowing whether he would arrive in a good mood or in a rage, leaving her with what she called persistent "stomach-in-knots" anxiety.

In Black communities, internalized misogyny has enabled a culture where women are expected to endure harm silently, often in the name of love, sacrifice, or faith. Too many women have witnessed "grace" coddle violent men, wrapped in the language of forgiveness and survival.