Voices to End FGM/C: Enhancing the Wellbeing of Survivors and Mobilizing a Global Community to Speak Out
Amy Hill
Visit the Voices to End FGM/C Website now.
Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) continues to impact millions of girls and young women globally. The practice is an age-old cultural tradition shrouded in silence and maintained by adherence to social norms claiming it’s necessary for women; the reality is that it exacts a devastating toll on their physical and emotional health. Long stereotyped as an “African problem,” FGM/C is now known to take place in countries across the globe. More and more women are taking the risk of speaking out against this form of gender-based violence, even though doing so puts them at risk of being ostracized by their families and communities.
In 2017, Silence Speaks began a partnership with Sahiyo United to End FGM/C and convened a digital storytelling workshop with FGM/C survivors living in the U.S. Over just three years, this initial pilot effort (“Sahiyo Stories”) has grown into Voices to End FGM/C. Through our reflective and participatory workshop process, participants connect with each other, heal from the impacts of FGM/C, and become further galvanized to take leadership on efforts to end the practice. We have continued working with Sahiyo to lead five additional workshops: one with women in six different countries, through an online process involving women artists and illustrators; one as a wellness and storytelling retreat for women survivors and advocates, in Asheville, NC (in collaboration with local nonprofit Threads for Wellbeing); one with women survivors and health providers, in Washington, DC.; and two online during COVID, with survivors and anti-FGM/C advocates from around the world. Following the workshops, the storytellers developed blog postings as a way of reflecting on what it means to share their stories publicly.
Voices has thus far worked with 50+ women born in Canada, Ethiopia, the Gambia, India, Indonesia, Kenya, India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Singapore, Tanzania, the U.K., the U.S., and more. Sahiyo is coordinating the strategic distribution of the stories and blog postings via social media and has garnered significant media attention for this work to de-stigmatize and prevent FGM/C. Voices is proud to be part of a groundswell of women and activists who are mobilizing to ensure that future generations of girls and young women are spared. View the full project playlist, read reflections by Voices storytellers on our blog, and see a map showing where our global storytellers currently reside.
Special thanks to Wallace Global for their vision in funding this effort, and to the Viiv Healthcare “End FGM Challenge,” the George Washington University School of Public Health, and the U.S. Department of Justice, Office for Victims of Crime, for their additional support.