Building Sanctuaries for Survivors
“You know what happened. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Trust in your gut.” — Carolyn Shayte
“I will continue to act out of love and not fear. We deserve nothing less.” — Georgia Beatty
“You have a community that loves you, survivors. You have a community that will fight for you, survivors. You are not in this alone.” — Olivia Harris
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, there have been more than 700 hate crimes since election day. As survivors of rape, domestic violence and childhood sexual abuse, now more than ever, we need fight back against rape culture. We need to name and confront the ways that it intersects with white supremacy; we need to interrupt the racist, transphobic, homophobic violence, fear and anxiety that the president elect incites through his words and actions.
As survivors, we will continue to resist. We will continue to show the resilience of communities that have been under threat even before this election, and who remain under threat right now. As survivors, we will continue to carve out safe spaces to heal, to organize, and to fight back.
What does creating safe spaces look like? Sometimes, it is showing solidarity. Above are just a few of the many messages that FORCE: Upsetting Rape Culture is gathering for our next action.
These messages of solidarity are built upon the work of another example of safe spaces for survivors — the Monument Quilt — an ongoing collection of stories from survivors of sexual and domestic violence, written, painted and stitched onto red quilt squares. Our stories are displayed in city and town centers to create and demand public space to heal, creating a culture of support, not shame for survivors. The quilt resists the popular and narrow narrative of how sexual violence occurs by telling many stories, not one. The quilt has already been displayed in 25 different cities and towns across the Eastern half of the United States. This spring, we will embark on a West Coast tour with the quilt. In 2018, during a final exhibition, the Quilt will blanket the National Mall with the phrase “Not Alone.”
At the quilt displays, so many survivors have shared that the display is the first time they have felt safe in public to identify themselves as a survivor. In 2013, one visitor said:
“If I had to sum up my experience in one word, it would be ‘safe.’ As a survivor, my biggest struggle in life is to feel safe. It’s been a struggle to feel safe in intimate relationships, it’s been a struggle to feel safe in the presence of co-workers, or just walking down the street. I have never, in my entire life, felt it was “safe” to publicly express my grief, anger, pain, or sorrow related to the trauma that I have survived. For the first time in my life I walked into a space where it was safe to be a survivor. It is a life altering experience that all survivors deserve.”
This #GivingTuesday, we are asking you to build a relationship with us as survivors, and to join your voice with ours. There are so many ways to become part of FORCE’s efforts to upset rape culture.
- Donate to support our ongoing work. Your financial support will help us continue to gather and display stories from survivors through the Monument Quilt and organize survivors in Baltimore through Gather Together.
- Tell your story as a survivor, including the many intersecting parts of your identity, or write a message of support, by creating your Monument Quilt square. There is one year left to send your quilt to us! Learn how here.
- Send us your messages of support for survivors in the face of Trump’s abusive actions, or a statement about how his actions are abusive. Your words will be used for an action FORCE is planning to let Trump’s administration know that survivors will not be silent.
- Bring FORCE to your school or community for a workshop on consent, a quilt display, or to learn how to do your own artistic activism. Learn more by emailing upsettingrapeculture@gmail.com.
“I feel you. I know you. You can rest in knowing that here in this Monument Quilt we have gathered together a fierce love. Praying for amazing grace.”
— Monique
Join us and help to build communities that are sanctuaries for survivors.
