Girl-Talk-Girl Kazakhstan: Narrative as a “Way of Sharing the Pain of the Other”
By Madeline Kutler
It is through individual stories that we learn about and are perhaps most deeply affected by others’ lived experiences. It is one thing to learn about the history of discrimination and trauma in an objective, removed setting, but another thing entirely to learn about experiencing such things from an individual who has experienced them. As Meyre Santana Silva said about Ken Bugul’s moving autobiographical novel, The Abandoned Baobab, someone else’s narrative acts as
“a textual testimony which can penetrate us like an actual life…[it] turns into a way of sharing the pain of the other” (Postcolonial Text).
Footage created Girl-talk-Girl in order to perpetuate this sharing and to build partnerships between the U.S. and other countries to end gender-based violence (GBV) through empowerment and storytelling. This year, Girl-Talk-Girl moved to Almaty, Kazakhstan, where we are working with our local partner organization, Rodnik.
Rodnik is a leading mitigator of human trafficking who established the first shelter in Kazakhstan in 2006, and currently runs a hotline for survivors. Kazakhstan is a Tier 2 Watchlist country for human trafficking according to the U.S. Department of State. Human trafficking, along with other forms of GBV, such as domestic violence, intimate partner violence, and sexual assault, all disproportionately impact women.
In fact, 17% of women in Kazakhstan (ages 18–75) have experienced intimate partner physical and/or sexual violence, and 21% report psychological abuse (Committee of Statistics of Kazakhstan). LGBTQ+ discrimination and violence is socially and politically sanctioned (Human Rights Watch; Central Asian Survey). All of these forms of GBV cause wellness problems in their victims, including both mental and physical detriment (Journal of Urban Health; Affilia; Central Asian Survey). Footage is working to mitigate and end these practices by working with Kazakh leadership and citizens.
GBV is contextual, woven into the physical, social, cultural, and economic landscapes of people’s lives, and intersectional, compounded by the myriad intersecting aspects of a person’s identity — their race, ethnicity, ability, sexual orientation, age, and socioeconomic status. People with marginalized and minority identities are historically more vulnerable to GBV than others (California Coalition Against Sexual Assault). Underserved young women with marginalized identities in Kazakhstan (e.g. migrant, Muslim, and/or rural) are more likely to experience GBV than others. For this reason, it is imperative that we empower these women and allow them to share their narratives. Their lived experiences are unique to each individual, and Girl-Talk-Girl gives us a way to share in their growth and pain.
[ Footage is working to mitigate and end these practices by working with Kazakh leadership and citizens. ]
There is a wealth of research confirming the positive psychological benefits of storytelling, which is often framed as narrative psychology. Narrative exposure therapy, for example, has recently come into the forefront of psychological research as an effective tool to reduce post-traumatic, depressive, and dissociative symptom severity (BMC Psychiatry). In this method of therapy, patients construct a narration of their whole life, from birth to present, while focusing on the details of their traumatic experiences.
[ Their lived experiences are unique to each individual, and Girl-Talk-Girl gives us a way to share in their growth and pain. ]
The recurring theme in narrative therapy research focuses on the importance of finding meaning through constructing the narrative. Sharing a personal narrative can help to develop new meaning on past events (McGill Journal of Education). Storytelling can thereby spark a sense of hope, belonging, and meaning for the storytellers. Because stories activate universal emotions and themes, they are able to bridge individual and cultural differences, serving as a powerful platform for person-to-person diplomacy (Exploring Positive Psychology). Not only does storytelling allow us to understand ourselves, but it allows us to share in the experiences, or pain, of the other.
[ Because stories activate universal emotions and themes, they are able to bridge individual and cultural differences, serving as a powerful platform for person-to-person diplomacy. ]
Girl-talk-Girl’s mission aligns with these statements. During the Girl-talk-Girl Kazakhstan program, narrative was used as a tool for personal growth from trauma, cultural bridging, diplomacy, partnership, and greater social change. While working with Kazakh survivors of GBV, we continued our work supporting young women in sharing their individual narratives to heal collectively. These stories are now part of our online platform which can be used to spark dialogue on young women’s experiences with GBV around the world.
Indeed, our Girl-talk-Girl program creates a safe space for young women — so rarely heard — to connect around shared experiences, heal the shame that accompanies violence, and to deepen all of our compassion for both others and ourselves. Our diplomacy work through Girl-talk-Girl in Central Asia has only just begun.
Girl-talk-Girl Kazakhstan is a project sponsored and supported by the U.S. Diplomatic Mission to Kazakhstan.
