'Only one who deserved it': How rape survivor became part of all-woman space crew

Khaleej Times

19-04-2025

Users across the world took to social media to express their reactions as an all-woman crew roared to space on one of billionaire Jeff Bezos' rockets. With the crew including pop star Katy Perry and Bezos' fiancee Lauren Sanchez, the flight brought the passengers beyond the Karman line, the internationally recognized boundary of space.
The 10-minute flight drew flak from social media users who pointed out the environmental impact of the trip, along with the discrepancy of celebrating women going to space while the needs of women in underprivileged communities, including access to education, sanitary products, remain unfulfilled in many ways.
While Katy Perry faced the brunt of criticism, audiences also praised one particular member in the crew. Amanda Nguyen, who became the first Vietnamese woman in space, had initially delayed her astronaut dreams to fight for sexual assault survivors' rights.
Her advocacy for survivors came in the aftermath of a heinous crime, when she was raped at a frat party during her senior year in 2013. Nguyen was determined to make the law more supportive for survivors, and she bravely put her astronaut dreams on hold for 10 years.
Nguyen was a student at Harvard University in pursuit of a career at either Nasa or the CIA. She had been studying astrophysics at the college, had interned at Nasa at 18 years old, and had previously helped the agency develop a Kepler exoplanet-hunting space telescope. She was also a nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.
With survivors having to pay for their rape kits which would be destroyed in six months, Nguyen went through a trying time, leading her to recognise the trauma of fellow survivors; she heard multiple stories of courage and survival.
Nguyen put all her dreams on hold, and worked on drafting a bill to the Congress. In a landmark decision, the act passed unanimously, and was named the "Sexual Assault Survivors' Rights Act," which entitles survivors to free medical exams, mandates that forensic evidence be kept for at least the statute of limitations on rape, and provides the option of extending that timeline in certain circumstances.
According to UK media, the senior counsel from the Senate judiciary suggested calling it Amanda's Law, but Nguyen wanted it to represent all survivors.
Now, in 2025, Nguyen stepped off a vessel by Blue Origin, rejoicing as she returned to Earth after a brief journey to space. Having fought for women all her life, placing the push for change above her own dreams, she was "the only one who deserved this trip," multiple social media users commented on Nguyen's page.
Some commenters highlighted the lack of awareness about Nguyen's struggle, saying: "I was there was more media coverage on you & why you, specifically, earned your rightful place in visiting space. From 1 SA survivor to another, I'm just very proud of you."
However, not all social media users were in praise, with some maintaining that her journey to space should have been for exploration, and "not commercial."
Even in space, she continued her fight for survivors' and women's rights. The two zero-G indicators – the object that indicates the start of a gravity-less environment – included a note she'd written to herself promising to return to astronaut dreams, and a hospital band from when she was given a rape kit.
Nguyễn, who is also a bioastronautics research scientist, even brought a few in-orbit projects to conduct during the short flight.
One of those experiments involves testing material for wound dressing in microgravity; better absorption technology would make it possible for engineers to create space-friendly pads or tampons for women astronauts who menstruate.
Nguyen is born to refugee parents who made their way on a boat, using only the stars as guidance. In a touching video, her mom became emotional as she looked at the same skies, years later, to see her daughter breaking both the sound barriers, and the glass ceiling. Watch the video below:
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A post shared by Amanda Nguye��n (@amandangocnguyen)
The young astronaut did not forget her roots; once in space, she shared an inspiring message for young Vietnamese girls. "While I may be the first, I am not the last," she said in a video shared on Instagram. Watch it below:
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A post shared by Amanda Nguye��n (@amandangocnguyen)