The Clothesline Project
Imagine getting physically abused or even raped by someone you thought you trusted. The mere idea of it is enough to send chills down someone’s spine. Yet statistics depict a grave situation where frequencies of such events keep increasing at a staggering rate.
The Clothesline Project, established in 1990 by a coalition of women who had suffered some form of domestic abuse, has become one of the many prolific means of relating stories of survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. With 500 projects in 41 states and 51 countries, the Project involves survivors to write messages on shirts regarding their experience with domestic violence or sexual abuse and hang them on a clothesline. Supporters of survivors can also write encouraging messages to boost self-esteem of survivors and also to commemorate victims who had passed away because of domestic violence and assault. The uniqueness of the project lies in the fact that it provides freedom to anyone making the shirts in any way they choose. It is said that participating in the project not only reaches out to the public to educate them about violence against women but it also acts as a cathartic tool for survivors to let go off some of the pain that they had been holding back since their mishap. Moreover, it portrays uplifting messages to other survivors to show that they are not alone.
The Clothesline Project of Bucknell University will be taking place from October 12-19, 2012. Students, either survivors or supporters, are encouraged to make shirts from October 1-5, which will be displayed in the New Student Space at Elaine Langone Center. This year, there will be some shirts made by survivors and staff from Transitions, a local agency that provides shelter and awareness for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of serious offence. The making of shirts will be one of many events in which Transitions participates as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October. This will be a great opportunity for Bucknell students, staff and faculty to learn more about domestic violence straight from survivors at Transitions and also to note that there is an organization out there that they can use as a resource whenever needed. Moreover, it is hoped that the project will allow the survivors who will be making the shirt to channel their pain into something creative so that they feel empowered instead of abused.
contributed by: Faria Sanjana’13, Bucknell University
The Clothesline Project, established in 1990 by a coalition of women who had suffered some form of domestic abuse, has become one of the many prolific means of relating stories of survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. With 500 projects in 41 states and 51 countries, the Project involves survivors to write messages on shirts regarding their experience with domestic violence or sexual abuse and hang them on a clothesline. Supporters of survivors can also write encouraging messages to boost self-esteem of survivors and also to commemorate victims who had passed away because of domestic violence and assault. The uniqueness of the project lies in the fact that it provides freedom to anyone making the shirts in any way they choose. It is said that participating in the project not only reaches out to the public to educate them about violence against women but it also acts as a cathartic tool for survivors to let go off some of the pain that they had been holding back since their mishap. Moreover, it portrays uplifting messages to other survivors to show that they are not alone.
The Clothesline Project of Bucknell University will be taking place from October 12-19, 2012. Students, either survivors or supporters, are encouraged to make shirts from October 1-5, which will be displayed in the New Student Space at Elaine Langone Center. This year, there will be some shirts made by survivors and staff from Transitions, a local agency that provides shelter and awareness for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other forms of serious offence. The making of shirts will be one of many events in which Transitions participates as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October. This will be a great opportunity for Bucknell students, staff and faculty to learn more about domestic violence straight from survivors at Transitions and also to note that there is an organization out there that they can use as a resource whenever needed. Moreover, it is hoped that the project will allow the survivors who will be making the shirt to channel their pain into something creative so that they feel empowered instead of abused.
contributed by: Faria Sanjana’13, Bucknell University
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