Women are not defined by the violence to which they are exposed—the lowered gaze of a survivor is not so much a gesture of shame so much as it is a mechanism in the pursuit of self-preservation.

For the fortunately inexperienced, it is impossible to fathom the continuously burning scar-the ghosts of such trauma and their continual haunt on even the most resilient of bodies. Survivors are entitled to their time and space in healing—whatever it may entail. Their bodies having already been forcefully usurped for the purpose of another cannot withstand the external expectations of others, and as those outside of the experience, we are accountable for nurturing their return to a knowledge of their bodies that acknowledges the impact, but reveres their transition from the victim to the survivor. We are not within the right of overlooking the body as a palimpsest—a conglomerate of physical experiences, which constitute a whole and inevitable historical trajectory. However, as with most experiences both physical and emotional, we acknowledge that the reliving of a violent or unjust act only results in an internalized reenactment of the violence. It is then our obligation as sympathizing, and not apathetically empathizing, human beings to nurture the reclamation of the self.

Proposed is a traditional and ritualistic gathering of women making visibly poignant work significant in its imbuement of the Divine spirit, enabling collaborative healing. The shared environment nourishes a sanctuary of a familiarity that relies in women recognizing themselves through their acknowledgement of other women.

Amina Ahmed