“I’m so grateful for Sahiyo, and for the Voices to End FGM/C project for providing me with the platform to bring this story out of the darkness. Nearly two decades later, I am still healing and working on growing around my grief. Now, I think about who I want to be because this happened to me. I hope to break the cycle of trauma by redefining what it means to be a woman in my role as a wife, mother, and activist; I can continue contributing to a growing body of voices that will put an end to this practice in my daughter’s lifetime.”

~Farrah Dalal, Voices Storyteller

Farrah is one of seven storytellers in a new cohort of Sahiyo and StoryCenter’s Voices to End FGM/C project, choosing to share her personal story in the hope that no more girls will be subjected to FGM/C. 

On April 18th, Sahiyo will begin releasing seven videos produced as part of the Voices to End FGM/C project. A collaboration between Sahiyo, StoryCenter, and Asian Women’s Shelter (AWS), this project is mobilizing a critical mass of storytellers and activists from across the world by bringing people together to share and heal from their experiences of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), connect and grow as leaders in their own communities, and create short videos calling for an end to this harmful practice.

“When I was exposed to Voices, I began contemplating sharing my story. When I talked to my husband about it, he asked me what I would add to the story. He said, ‘you already know what happened to you. What will you add to the story?’ I said, ‘no I don’t know what happened to me.’ At that moment, I started crying, realizing that for 50 years I had not spoken about this to anyone. That’s when I decided that I had to share my story for myself; I had to acknowledge that this had happened to me.”

~ Muna Osman, Voices storyteller 

Since 2018, there have been a total of seven workshops, supporting 63 storytellers from 19+ countries in sharing personal stories of courage and transformation. 

Voices videos are being utilized globally to advocate for the abandonment of FGM/C within communities, train healthcare and other service providers on the impact of FGM/C, and educate governments on the need for policies that protect future generations of girls from FGM/C. You can read reflection blogs from this cohort’s storytellers here. To view the new videos, check out this playlist. Previously published videos can be found on this playlist.

For further questions, contact Mariya at mariya@sahiyo.org.

Disclaimer

This blog was produced by Sahiyo under 15POVC-21-GG-00988-NONF, awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this guide are those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent the official position or policies of the U.S. Department of Justice.

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