[NOTE: Trigger Warning.]
People look to art for countless reasons. Entertainment. Information. Distraction. Validation. Meaning. It can do all those things, it can do none of those things. It’s entirely what we make it. And sometimes, just sometimes, it can give us the power to heal ourselves. Or, at the very least, help start to put the pieces back together. There are countless worthy art projects in the world. Some are more famous than others. Some are more effective than others. But today, today I feel moved beyond words to talk about Project Unbreakable. It’s a simple concept, so simple it’s surprising it hasn’t been done before. That is to photograph sexual assault survivors holding the posters with quotes from their attackers. In essence, it a project to “take the power back of the words that were once used against them.” Will this project end sexual assault as we know it? No. Every two minutes someone in the Unites States is sexually assaulted. But what it can do is help to heal those who have been assaulted and release the shame that is all too often associated with such attacks.
I feel fortunate so far in my life to not be among those statistics. But women I know, women I love deeply, are. And there are so many more, both men and women. Project Unbreakable was started by Grace Brown, a 19-year-old freshman at The School of Visual Arts in New York. Scrolling through the project filled me with both anger and hope. Anger at a society that allows attackers to think treating another human being this way is ever acceptable. Hope that we can come together to heal the hurt and turn the shame around onto the people who really deserve it. We humans can be monstrous sometimes. But we can also be each other’s better, unbreakable angels. I want to live in a world with more of the latter.
Project Unbreakable is in the midst of a modest funding project. You won’t find any red bracelets or hip posters or action kits for sale, but there are several nifty gifts available at different funding levels. Check it out and throw it a few dollars if you can.
For those seeking counseling or emergency support, please contact RAINN for free and confidential help.
Great project
ReplyDeleteExcellent and relevant post.
ReplyDeleteBritish news story today. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/4194035/Gillian-Anderson-reveals-lesbian-affairs.html
ReplyDelete"Anger at a society that allows attackers to think treating another human being this way is ever acceptable."
ReplyDeleteEspecially when a candidate running for president, no less, says no abortion allowed even in cases of rape and incest: Santorum, et al. Using the inimitable excuse that most women/girls lie! Santorum even rubbed salt in that wound and said, the rape pregnancy is a gift from God.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2012/jan/25/rick-santorum-rape-pregnancy
Anyway, thanks for posting "unbreakable" Dorothy. Very interesting exposure art, getting the WORDS out there, so hidden. I have been raging about this for years, especially when men and women throw around the "C" word so casually these days.
Thank you for posting this. It's a beautiful project, and you've written beautifully about it. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for bringing this to light, I had never heard of it before. I cried my way through a page of the website, and then sent my own submission.
ReplyDeleteIt's an amazing project indeed but why is this rated PG-13? I mean wouldn't you want as much people as possible to watch it?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, all the quotes said by the rapists made me so f*cking furious and sad but unfortunately they're not new at all. It's great if the project can actually make people realize that if you got raped, it's not your fault, nor is the way you were dressed or behaved relevant.