Hecate
10-12-2007, 08:47 AM
Recent events in the United States have moved us to action. Violence against women is sadly, not a new phenomenon in our country or in the world, however, in the last year women of color have experienced brutal forms of violence, torture, rape and injustice which have gone unnoticed, received little to no media coverage, or a limited community response.
We are responding to:
- The brutal and inhumane rape, torture, and kidnapping of Megan Williams in Logan, West Virginia who was held by six assailants for a month.
- Rape survivors in the Dunbar Housing Projects in West Palm Beach, Florida one of whom was forced to perform sexual acts on her own child.
- A 13 year old native American girl was beaten by two white women and has since been harassed by several men yelling “white power” outside of her home.
- Seven black lesbian girls attempted to stop an attacker and were later charged with aggravated assault and are facing up to 11 year prison sentences.
In a Litany of Survival, Audre Lorde writes, “When we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak remembering we were never meant to survive.” These words shape our collective organizing to break the silence surrounding women of color’s stories of violence. We are asking for community groups, grass-root organizations, college campus students and groups, communities of faith, online communities, and individuals to join us in speaking out against violence against women of color. If we speak, we cannot be invisible.
Join us and stand up to violence against women!
- Be bold, be brave, be red. Wear red on October 31, 2007. Take a picture or video of yourself and friends wearing red. Send it to: beboldbered@gmail.com (beboldbered%40gmail.com). We’ll post it!
- Take Your Red to the Streets! Know of a location where violence occurred against a woman of color? Have a public location where you feel women of color are often ignored? Make violence against women of color visible by decorating the space in red. Be sure to send us pictures and or video of your display!
- Rally! Gather your friends, family, and community to rally. Check out the Document the Silence website for the litany we’re asking participants to read together on October 31st. Be sure to send us pictures and/or video of the event! You could even gather where you created a display!
- Share your story of silence. Share your own story of silence by uploading it to the Document the Silence website (http://documentthesilence.wordpress.com/). You can send a story in any form you’d like – as a written statement, video clip, movie, documentary, or visual art. Our goal is to document the silences within our relationships, homes, families, communities, jobs, schools, faith communities, governments, and within our world. We want you to share your story of injustice.
Stories that the media, elected officials, self-appointed leaders, and organizations ignore. To upload videos and visual art pieces, please email them to: beboldbered@gmail.com (beboldbered%40gmail.com)
- Find an event to attend with an organization for Women of Color on the Document the Silence website.
- Be an ally. Visit the Document the Silence website to download and read resources about how to be an ally and support to women of color in your community.
- Participate in a Stopping the Violence, Finding Strategies for Healing Town Hall Meeting. Individuals and organizations are asked to sponsor discussion groups on how to effectively address and end violence against women of color. Town Hall Meetings are designed to: document the silences surrounding women of color stories of violence; create “safe spaces” for both women and men to share their stories; and outline ways that people can stay in engaged and make a difference within their own communities. To help facilitate these discussions, we are asking organizations and individuals:
- Show the short movie clip, How Do We Keep a Social Movement Alive?, before beginning the discussion about violence committed against women of color.
http://www.jumpcut.com/view?id=E44BFBCE67BF11DC9030000423CF037A
- Download the resources and activities, which can be found on our website.
Important Side notes:
- We understand that October 31, 2007 is Halloween. For most families it’s a time to be with their children. Even though Halloween is about “fake” and “imagined” terrors, the violence committed against women of color is very “real.” Not only is it a “real” reality on October 31st, but it’s also a “real” terror for the rest of the year.
- We also understand that it may be difficult for some women of color to share their stories of violence and we respect their decision not to document the silence.
- We also understand that the coalition of women who are working on the be bold, be brave campaign are an ad hoc group dedicated to amplifying and making more visible the work that so many women of color organizations engage in daily to end violence against women of color.
Stop the violence, End the silence!!!!
We are responding to:
- The brutal and inhumane rape, torture, and kidnapping of Megan Williams in Logan, West Virginia who was held by six assailants for a month.
- Rape survivors in the Dunbar Housing Projects in West Palm Beach, Florida one of whom was forced to perform sexual acts on her own child.
- A 13 year old native American girl was beaten by two white women and has since been harassed by several men yelling “white power” outside of her home.
- Seven black lesbian girls attempted to stop an attacker and were later charged with aggravated assault and are facing up to 11 year prison sentences.
In a Litany of Survival, Audre Lorde writes, “When we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak remembering we were never meant to survive.” These words shape our collective organizing to break the silence surrounding women of color’s stories of violence. We are asking for community groups, grass-root organizations, college campus students and groups, communities of faith, online communities, and individuals to join us in speaking out against violence against women of color. If we speak, we cannot be invisible.
Join us and stand up to violence against women!
- Be bold, be brave, be red. Wear red on October 31, 2007. Take a picture or video of yourself and friends wearing red. Send it to: beboldbered@gmail.com (beboldbered%40gmail.com). We’ll post it!
- Take Your Red to the Streets! Know of a location where violence occurred against a woman of color? Have a public location where you feel women of color are often ignored? Make violence against women of color visible by decorating the space in red. Be sure to send us pictures and or video of your display!
- Rally! Gather your friends, family, and community to rally. Check out the Document the Silence website for the litany we’re asking participants to read together on October 31st. Be sure to send us pictures and/or video of the event! You could even gather where you created a display!
- Share your story of silence. Share your own story of silence by uploading it to the Document the Silence website (http://documentthesilence.wordpress.com/). You can send a story in any form you’d like – as a written statement, video clip, movie, documentary, or visual art. Our goal is to document the silences within our relationships, homes, families, communities, jobs, schools, faith communities, governments, and within our world. We want you to share your story of injustice.
Stories that the media, elected officials, self-appointed leaders, and organizations ignore. To upload videos and visual art pieces, please email them to: beboldbered@gmail.com (beboldbered%40gmail.com)
- Find an event to attend with an organization for Women of Color on the Document the Silence website.
- Be an ally. Visit the Document the Silence website to download and read resources about how to be an ally and support to women of color in your community.
- Participate in a Stopping the Violence, Finding Strategies for Healing Town Hall Meeting. Individuals and organizations are asked to sponsor discussion groups on how to effectively address and end violence against women of color. Town Hall Meetings are designed to: document the silences surrounding women of color stories of violence; create “safe spaces” for both women and men to share their stories; and outline ways that people can stay in engaged and make a difference within their own communities. To help facilitate these discussions, we are asking organizations and individuals:
- Show the short movie clip, How Do We Keep a Social Movement Alive?, before beginning the discussion about violence committed against women of color.
http://www.jumpcut.com/view?id=E44BFBCE67BF11DC9030000423CF037A
- Download the resources and activities, which can be found on our website.
Important Side notes:
- We understand that October 31, 2007 is Halloween. For most families it’s a time to be with their children. Even though Halloween is about “fake” and “imagined” terrors, the violence committed against women of color is very “real.” Not only is it a “real” reality on October 31st, but it’s also a “real” terror for the rest of the year.
- We also understand that it may be difficult for some women of color to share their stories of violence and we respect their decision not to document the silence.
- We also understand that the coalition of women who are working on the be bold, be brave campaign are an ad hoc group dedicated to amplifying and making more visible the work that so many women of color organizations engage in daily to end violence against women of color.
Stop the violence, End the silence!!!!