Sahiyo U.S. will host its second annual Women's Day Celebration & Silent Auction with the goal of raising $15,000 in support of our work to end female genital cutting. The auction will open on Wednesday, March 6th, 2024 and close on Sunday, March 10th, 2024. During this five-day fundraising event, we'll celebrate women's voices with comedy, video spotlights, stories, and entertainment. We’re incredibly grateful to all of our generous sponsors and supporters who have contributed some wonderful auction items. To uplift their work and thank them, we’re highlighting a few and why they support Sahiyo as a part of larger series. And if you, too, would like to contribute in some way,  click here to donate auction items, money, or sponsor the event.

Yesterday, we profiled Zehra Patwa. Today, we’d like to introduce our second donor: Kaneez Madraswalla. Kaneez is Sahiyo’s U.S. Advisory Board Member and a trained lawyer. She works as the Vice-President of Compliance at QBE North America, where she also co-leads the QBE Women’s Initiative Network. Kaneez believes that participating in volunteer work allows individuals to contribute meaningfully to their communities while fostering personal growth, empathy, and empowers women to support and uplift each other, and is passionate about embodying this in her involvement with Sahiyo and other activism.

When and how did your involvement with Sahiyo first begin?  

I first became aware of Sahiyo and its mission through my conversations with a Board member, Zehra Patwa, almost ten years ago.

Why did you decide to become a donor for Sahiyo’s Silent Auction? What does giving to Sahiyo mean to you? 

As a newly inducted Board member, I wanted to make an impact by raising awareness of the issue and normalizing conversations surrounding the mission of Sahiyo.

Giving to Sahiyo represents a commitment to ending a harmful practice, supporting survivors, empowering women and girls, and advocating for positive change in communities affected by FGC – especially the Dawoodi Bohra community, of which I am a member.

What did you donate or contribute? 

I am hosting a watch party at my home with an expected attendance of 30 people.

How would you like to see your donation help Sahiyo grow? 

While I understand the money raised will help Sahiyo programming and outreach, I am most excited about raising awareness of this issue and introducing others to Sahiyo and its work.

Why do you think others should donate to Sahiyo?  

One of the things I look for when I donate to an organization, other than its mission, is to see the direct impact my contribution has and what it means to the organization. Sahiyo is a small, grassroots organization where every dollar counts. It is spearheaded by folks who are so very passionate about Sahiyo's mission and are deeply committed to making a difference!

Related:

• Read about our other inspiring supporters in our Silent Auction Donor Spotlight 2024 series
• Sahiyo welcomes Kaneez Madraswalla as new U.S. Advisory Board Member

 Sahiyo U.S. will host its second annual Women's Day Celebration & Silent Auction with the goal of raising $15,000 in support of our work to end female genital cutting. The auction will open on Wednesday, March 6th, 2024 and close on Sunday, March 10th, 2024. During this five-day fundraising event, we'll celebrate women's voices with comedy, video spotlights, stories, and entertainment. We’re incredibly grateful to all of our generous sponsors and supporters who have contributed some wonderful auction items. To uplift their work and thank them, we’re highlighting a few and why they support Sahiyo. And if you, too, would like to contribute in some way,  click here to donate auction items, money, or sponsor the event.

Today, we’re profiling Zehra Patwa, who serves on Sahiyo’s U.S. Advisory Board. She is also the co-founder of WeSpeakOut, an organization that advocates for Bohra women and their rights. WeSpeakOut is particularly focused on ending FGM/C in the Bohra community and banning it altogether.

When and how did your involvement with Sahiyo first begin?

After I found out that khatna (FGC) was happening in my community, my cousin put me in touch with a WhatsApp group of several Bohra women [in 2015], which included the founders of Sahiyo as well as the future founder of WeSpeakOut.

I was intrigued because I had never heard anybody talk about the practice like this. All the conversations I'd previously had about cutting with female members of my family were like, “It just happens. You just do it and you just move on with your life.” But in this WhatsApp group, people were talking about how to stop this generations-old practice. 

It was really refreshing to be with a group of Bohra women who were not going to take it any longer and were like, “we're not going to let this happen to our daughters. We're not going to let it happen to any girls.” Typically, Bohra people are quite compliant – we tend to be peaceful and don’t want to rock the boat. We're afraid of what people might think, so the conversations in this group were very powerful.

So, that’s how it all started, and now I’m on the Advisory Board! Mariya [Taher] has been an incredible inspiration. She has really helped me develop as an activist, and the Activist Retreat in particular has helped me. I think the retreat has been one of the highlights for me personally in my activism, so, that's why we need the auction to keep these programs going.

Why did you decide to become a donor for Sahiyo’s Women’s Day Celebration and Silent Auction again? What does giving to Sahiyo mean to you?  

I have been connected with Sahiyo since close to its inception and I've seen what an impact it's made, and continues to make. Sahiyo as an organization has become so well-organized and expansive in its reach, and through its work, many people are recognizing that FGC is a practice that happens right here in the US.

The more impactful Sahiyo becomes, the fewer girls get cut and the more girls are protected.

I know many people have benefited from Sahiyo’s programs, survivors and activists alike. As activists, we very often keep on, burn out, rest, and then do it all over again, but Sahiyo and programs like the Activist Retreat have allowed us to carry on and not get burned out. It’s really important to know that there is support out there as that keeps these important conversations going. 

What did you donate or contribute this year?

I’m hosting a watch party again this year and my two artist friends are working on pieces for the auction. They both donated pieces last year, both of which were very popular so I'm excited to see what they come up with this year! 

How would you like to see your donations help Sahiyo grow? 

I'd like to see Sahiyo become an independent nonprofit.  I think by being an independent nonprofit, we'll be able to do so much more in terms of certain grants and certain programs that we can apply to. Being a fiscally sponsored nonprofit limits us a little bit and I think we've grown to a point where we're really ready to become independent. I think we're in a really good place and that will then extend our reach even more and allow us to have that kind of wider exposure, which would lead to greater social change.

Why do you think others should donate to Sahiyo? 

Everyone should donate to Sahiyo because it is doing such good work that impacts so many people.

I think the impact is even greater than we recognize because this practice is such an underground issue. It's not something people openly talk about, but I've had people pull me aside to tell me, “I can't say anything publicly, but I really support the work you do.” And that's really powerful.

So I think there are a lot more people impacted by the work than we even know and I think that will really help to eliminate the practice down the road. By supporting Sahiyo, more people can be reached and even if people don’t admit in public that they won't cut their daughters, if they decide to stop the practice in their families, this harmful traditional practice will eventually die out.

Related:

• Zehra Patwa on Sahiyo and the Coalition to End FGM/C’s recent panel discussion with Connecticut legislators – and why it was a positive step forward
• I don't remember my khatna. But it feels like a violation
• Read about our other inspiring supporters in our Silent Auction Donor Spotlight 2024 series

Gugu Makhari learned about the Voices to End FGM/C digital storytelling project through a friend and through personal research online. She wanted to share a story about how both female genital cutting (FGC) and male circumcision are normalized in her community. Those who undergo these harmful practices are often celebrated after they are cut.

“After a couple of months they come back and then we have this big ceremony where everyone comes out from different neighborhoods all together and they will go in a group and sing along cheer for them, so we're so used to that.”

But, this tradition had a painful impact on Gugu. She knew one girl who underwent FGC and never spoke to her again; and another friend who underwent male circumcision and died from the practice. These experiences affected her for life, and she still feels the loss of her close friend for the sake of tradition.

“I lost a friend and I always wanted to express myself…  but I didn't know how and I didn't really have a platform to do that.” 

The Voices workshop allowed her to have the space to tell her story for the first time. Gugu described her friend who died as: 

“The only person I had at the time when I was going through a lot at home, that understood me and who was really supportive and really loved me genuinely. He was very close to me. So yeah, that hurts.” 

Learning about her friend's death was difficult for Gugu, as their relationship was something she cherished deeply. 

“When I found out about his death. I went to his home and his mom [told] me what happened, but she didn't tell me in detail. I was still a little young, in our culture…you accept what you are told and that's usually it. I'm not gonna be asking his mom why you let this happen.”

The unknown circumstances of her friend's death frustrated Gugu, not knowing what happened, and why a practice with fatal consequences occurred in her community. This is what inspired her to create a story in his memory. For her digital story, Gugu created art pieces that reflected the fun and joy that radiated from her friend. 

“I was expressing myself using the art…  it helps in so many ways. It was…  a kind of healing, I don't know how to say it. But it also helped because it opened another door for me to really now use art as a form of expression for human rights. The art was about the culture where he came from. I have some drums that I drew in different sizes so that it resembles being heard amplifying your voice louder and louder and louder"

The Voices workshop provided her a cathartic space to tell her story, and to learn the stories of others who had undergone harmful practices like FGC.

“I've learned a lot about being confident and I learned a lot about sharing your story, how it can change other people's lives. I've been to so many workshops and events, but I didn't even feel like I was necessarily at a workshop. It felt like I was with family. And I couldn't believe that people have gone through so much pain. Hearing other people's stories made me realize that there's more for us to fight for in the world. And even if I was not directly affected, it helped for me to be there as well as a voice.”

Gugu’s choice to share her story about her friend highlights how connections can be made between the movement to end FGC and other harmful practices justified by tradition.

“I just hope people that receive this message understand how wrong this is and if there's anyone who's in my shoes who's lost a friend this way or someone they loved, that way they can get up and advocate and they can start speaking against this practice. I hope when they receive this message, they realize the danger.”

Gugulethu ‘Gugu’ Makhari is a dynamic force dedicated to championing women's rights, human rights, and youth empowerment on a global scale. As the Chair of the Commission on Women's Rights and Human Rights, she serves as a passionate advocate for change through her active involvement with the Youth Council for Global Sustainable Development Goals Inc NGO. Her commitment to creating a better world extends beyond borders, as she has also taken up the role of USA National Organizer and Coordinator for the "March For Our Planet" movement, catalyzing action for environmental sustainability. Gugu's multifaceted expertise and unwavering dedication make her an inspiring force driving positive change in diverse spheres.

By: Kiah Leone

While in Australia, I had the privilege of speaking with Marie Jones and Nigisti Mulholland from The African Women’s Clinic in Victoria, Australia to learn more about their clinic, the services they provide, and the current state of FGM/C-related care in the country. 

The African Women’s Clinic (AWC) is the only FGM/C-specific clinic in all of Australia. It’s staffed by women’s health nurses and midwives who provide confidential and comprehensive care to survivors living in the state of Victoria. For the last 14 years, the AWC has offered a safe space for survivors, while also providing FGM/C support and education resources. They have also made medical procedures such as de-infibulation more accessible to survivors. 

As a coordinator for the AWC, Marie works closely alongside Nigisti who is a coordinator for the Family and Reproductive Rights Education Program (FARREP)* at the Royal Women’s Hospital. FARREP is a program that provides services for women from places where FGM/C is practiced. Any survivor can self-refer to FARREP and once that contact has been established, a FARREP staff member can help the patient schedule their consultation, accompany them to their appointments, refer them to additional health services if necessary, and advocate for them if any issues arise. This close collaboration between FARREP workers and AWC clinicians has helped to foster an excellent environment to address the issue of FGM/C within a care setting. 

Clinic days are often filled with patient consultations, education and information sharing (involving books, diagrams, and mirrors), physical examinations, and deinfibulation procedures (when appropriate). Although clinic days may be busy, the advantage of a specialized clinic is that nurses and midwives at the AWC are able to spend as much time as needed with their patients.

“This is the beauty of a FGM/C-specific clinic,” said Marie.“There is no 15-minute appointments. It might be 30 to 40 minutes or more.”

Not only are staff able to spend more time with patients, but FARREP’s self-refer framework has helped to remove additional barriers to care such as long wait times. 

“It’s been wonderful for these women – they don’t have to wait long times to see a clinician, they can see us within two weeks or four weeks, " explained Marie. “If they want de-infibulation on that day we do it on that day or if they want it two weeks later because they need some time to think about it, that’s not a problem, so the clinic has just made it so easy.” 

In addition to improving the availability of this type of care, staff at the AWC have also worked to improve the quality of care that survivors in Victoria receive by prioritizing survivors’ safety and comfort. 

According to Marie and Nigisti, this often starts by having multiple preliminary conversations to ease any patient concerns before they even arrive in the clinic.

“I think that having this setup has helped them to build confidence in the early days,” said Nigisti. “Before they wouldn’t come for a review, but now they come in for a review and make an appointment to express their feelings and gratitude.”

Once in the clinic, a staff member will usually take a patient history and identify the type of cutting the patient has undergone. They’ll also discuss any health issues they may be experiencing, whether they’re eligible for a de-infibulation procedure, and what steps would be involved if so.

In addition to these services, education remains a cornerstone for staff at the AWC.

“At the AWC, we do education not only in the survivors’ communities, but also for service providers to understand the cultural background and the need to be culturally aware and competent to look after these women,” explained Nigisti.

This need for greater cultural awareness and competency amongst care providers is made clearer when patients share stories with Marie and Nigisti. Patients discuss all kinds of negative healthcare encounters they’ve experienced prior to finding the AWC.

“We’ve had women with traditional cutting who try to find somewhere else to get help and the GPs [general practitioners] don't know about FGM/C and you know the survivors go on for years before they actually find the clinic, but there's lots of lots of stories like that,” Marie elaborates. “We would like to give a lot more education out to the community for all health professionals, so that we get the word out, because even after 14 years, there are still a lot of health professionals and GPs that don’t know that we exist, which is very unfortunate.”

The stories shared here from Marie and Nigisti help to highlight the fact that FGM/C is a global issue that requires both local and international collaboration to address. As Australia’s first and only FGM/C clinic, the AWC has demonstrated a strong commitment to culturally safe and comprehensive care for survivors. In addition to offering a number of specialized services for patients, team members from both the AWC and the FARREP have emphasized the importance of expanding education efforts and a need for further resources in order to make that possible. 

To find out more about the African Women’s Clinic – or to learn how you can support the work that they do – please visit the African Women’s Clinic’s website. 

*Please note that since this discussion, Nigisti Mulholland has retired. Congratulations on your retirement, Nigisti! Thank you for your years of service supporting the health and well-being of FGM/C survivors. 

By Isatou Jallow

In my film “Behind The Wall,” I've chosen to share my deeply personal experience with Type 3 Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). Through this storytelling, my aim is threefold.

First, I want to educate. FGM, deeply rooted in tradition, often goes unquestioned. By unveiling the raw pain and suffering I endured, I hope to provoke reflection within communities about the necessity and ethics of this practice.

Secondly, it serves as a testament to resilience. By sharing my story, I aim to show survivors that they are not alone and that healing is possible. It's my hope that this personal account can offer solace and encouragement to those who have experienced similar pain.

Lastly, this documentary is a call to action. By shedding light on FGM, we can mobilize governments, NGOs, and communities to work together to eradicate this harmful practice.

In sharing my story, I hope to create a world where girls are free from this brutality, where silence is replaced with compassion, and where stories like mine inspire change. Together, we can amplify the voices of survivors and put an end to FGM.

Isatou Jallow is a legal scholar in the final year of her Ph.D. program at the University of Washington School of Law. With a strong commitment to advocacy and community service, she has volunteered and interned at organizations like Northwest Immigrants Rights and YWCA Sexual Violence Legal Services. Isatou also served as a commissioner for the City of Seattle Immigrant and Refugee Services, fostering inclusion and understanding among diverse communities. She gained valuable experience in the HR department of Seattle Children's Hospital, focusing on accommodation and worker's compensation. Driven by a belief in diversity and inclusion, Isatou founded Inclusive Outlook, a nonprofit advocating for inclusive education for children with disabilities and the health rights of women with disabilities. She is also the founder of Amosa Skin, a brand donating most of its proceeds to support Inclusive Outlook's initiatives. As Isatou approaches the final year of her Ph.D. program, she is focused on defending her research and completing her doctoral studies, aiming to contribute to research, policy development, and community engagement to promote inclusivity and make a positive impact.

Sahiyo U.S. is pleased to announce we’ve been awarded a grant alongside George Washington University’s Milken Institute School of Public Health, U.S. End FGM/C Network, and Global Woman PEACE Foundation from the Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) to develop training programs, prevention strategies, and education on FGM/C.  

“FGM/C is an issue I’ve known about my entire life.This partnership between our various organizations highlights something as a child I never thought possible, a public recognition that FGM/C is a concern in the U.S.," said Mariya Taher, Executive Director of Sahiyo U.S.

“It is significant that the OVW is recognizing the importance of addressing FGM/C in the United States, and that understanding its intersections with other forms of violence against women is crucial,” said Caitlin LeMay, the Executive Director of the U.S. End FGM/C Network.

Read the full article here.

By Aries Nuño 

In participating in Sahiyo's Voices to End FGM/C digital storytelling workshop, I chose to share a story that examined my journey toward understanding women’s health. This journey was not just a personal quest, but a response to a disquieting cultural reality: the pervasive silence among generations of women about their own bodies. Such silence, I discovered, often culminates in uncomfortable encounters within healthcare settings. My narrative serves as both a reflection and a critique of this phenomenon, extending its scope to spotlight the unique challenges faced by those who have undergone FGM/C when interacting with healthcare systems.

I hope my story serves as an eye-opener for healthcare professionals and the general public. Healthcare providers should strive for empathy and cultural sensitivity, as well as an understanding of how negative interactions in a healthcare setting can exacerbate an already traumatic experience for survivors of FGM/C. For the public, I would like my narrative to be both an invitation to engage in an open dialogue about women's health and an encouragement for conversations across generations — from grandmothers to mothers to daughters. 

By weaving these elements of storytelling together, I aim to not only bring individual experiences into a larger discussion, but also to contribute to a more nuanced, empathetic, and effective approach to public health. In doing so, I hope to be a part of breaking the cycle of silence and to help initiate lasting social change, one story at a time.

Aries Nuño is a public health professional interested in the sociocultural influences on an individual’s experience with sexual and reproductive healthcare. In her diverse public health career, she has contributed to projects including human-centered design to address female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) in Ebonyi, Nigeria, and expanding web-based access to self-administered STI and HIV testing for Indigenous populations across the U.S. She began volunteering with Sahiyo in 2021, and now joins the team as the Training and Technical Assistance Coordinator. She looks forward to leveraging her public health background to facilitate educational opportunities to promote more sustainable approaches to end FGM/C.

Sahiyo U.S. is excited to announce the publication of Examining Intersections Between Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting And Social Oppressions: A Mixed Methods Study, the second of three reports from our Critical Intersections Research Project. Inspired by our 2021 webinar, and building upon themes derived from our initial body of work released in 2023, this new report is based on original research from a mixed-methods survey with over 100 respondents, including individuals and organization working within and beyond the FGM/C sphere. We are proud to publish this report, as part of a survivor and advocate-led original research project, on February 6th, International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM/C.

The report examines two main forms of oppressions intersecting with FGM/C:

Systemic forces, such as discrimination within systems and institutions, included intersections between several forms of oppression such as xenophobia and racism with institutions like law enforcement. Many survey participants identified fear of the criminal justice system as a challenge for survivors and the end FGM/C movement; interestingly, a majority of every group reported to work with the legal system and law enforcement (in and beyond the FGM/C sphere).

Interpersonal and communal forces, such as discrimination from within practicing communities and the movement to end FGM/C, introduced complexities for survivors and activists alike. Interestingly, individuals working in the FGM/C sphere most commonly identified interpersonal challenges (rather than systemic forces) such as gender discrimination and other forms of gender-based violence as challenges that girls and women in FGM/C-practicing communities face. Additonally, a strong discord around the framing of FGM/C (‘mutilation’ vs. ‘cutting’) suggested a significant barrier to collaborating within the FGM/C sphere and beyond.

Lastly, the study examined the potential for cross-collaboration between the anti-FGM/C sphere and other social justice movements. Though participants reported an overwhelming desire for cross-collaboration across the demographic groups, they also identified many significant challenges for meaningful cross-collaboration. Participants also provided opportunities for collaboration. 

From the various challenges, opportunities, and intersections of oppressions, eight recommendations for cross-sector collaboration and intersectional work involving how to work toward ending FGM/C were gathered. 

This research is meant to support advocates working in FGM/C to better understand how these intersecting oppressions affect the movement to end FGM/C, and connect fellow activists and social change makers to understand the larger forms of inequity at play and unite in ending these universally oppressive systems. We aim to strengthen anti-FGM/C efforts by addressing the roots of inequity and inequality and creating stronger collaborative movements across various human rights issues. 

A special thank you to the Wallace Global Fund for funding this project!

Read the full report here.