On July 19th, Sahiyo Programs Coordinator Catherine Cox will be joined by Massachusetts Pediatric SANE Mildrine Tulysse for a training session at the School Nurses International Conference. This presentation is part of a multi-day training for school nurses and school health advocates coming from all around the world, and will take place in-person at Northeastern University. This presentation will explore FGM/C and discuss resources available for School Nurses who may come in contact with students impacted by FGC, and who are looking to better understand how to provide trauma-informed care while practicing cultural competency and sensitivity.

On August 1st, RTI International will host a webinar on digital storytelling with speakers Mariya Taher from Sahiyo and Amy Hill from StoryCenter. Since 2018, Sahiyo and StoryCenter have collaborated on the Voices to End FGM/C project. In this 90 minute introductory webinar, the webinar will provide an overview of the project's theoretical underpinnings, participatory media workshop methodology, and approach to sharing stories for education and advocacy. Sample Voices videos will be screened, and ample time will be available for questions and discussion. 

Register for the event here.

The Women Deliver 2023 Conference (WD 2023) is taking place in-person, as well as virtually, from July 17-20th in Kigali, Rwanda. The conference is expected to convene 6,000 people in Kigali, and over 200,000 people online. On July 16th, Sahiyo, as a member of the Global Platform for Action to End FGM/C, co-hosted  this year’s Pre-Conference on FGM/C - Catalyzing Global Action to End FGM/C. 

About the FGM/C Preconference:

The FGM/C Pre-Conference, Catalyzing Global Action to End FGM/C, was a space of shared solidarity, bringing together activists and organizations working to end FGM/C across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and America. It promoted knowledge exchange, interregional collaboration, and global cooperation with the aim of catalyzing collective action and movement building, designing actionable commitments, and working toward substantive structural change.

As part of the conference, one panel session during the day that included funders of the FGM/C field included, ‘From Rhetoric to Reality: Closing the Funding Gap and Uniting for Action to End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting’. This was a precursor to the launch of the Kigali Declaration that day. This declaration includes a call for a global summit dedicated to funding the end of this harmful practice. The Declaration emphasizes the need to shift funding to grassroots organizations and aims to mobilize donors and stakeholders to invest in the movement and bridge the funding gap- where only $4 available to avert each case of FGM/C, when $95 is required. By galvanizing support and resources, significant strides can be made to end FGM/C.

Read more about Women Deliver and the Conference.

On June 23rd, RTI’s Addressing Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Training and Technical Assistance Project (AFTTAP) team organized the event Roundtable on Systems Change to Address FGM/C Perspectives from State and Municipal Coalitions. The roundtable featured state and municipal coalitions and working groups from across the United States that work to address FGM/C domestically. Sahiyo U.S. Executive Director Mariya Taher facilitated a panel discussion during the roundtable and featured coalition representatives came from Washington State, Connecticut, New York City, Minnesota, Greater Los Angeles, and Massachusetts. Panelists were able to provide insight into their initiatives, processes, and provide ideas on how they would like to see the prevention, support work, and advocacy surrounding FGC expand.

Some coalitions focused more on advancing legislation on FGC while others focused on raising awareness of FGM/C. Joanne Golden, a Sahiyo U.S. Advisory Board member and founding member of the Massachusettes Coalition, spoke about the coalition’s success in passing state legislation to address FGC in August 2020. 

Preventing and responding to FGM/C requires effective collaboration across systems and this roundtable; overall, this event created a dialogue for U.S. based coalitions to discusses effective forms of collaboration for the future in the hopes of ending FGM/C in this country.

In May 2023, South Asian SOAR launched a Zine to commemorate and honor the stories of 16 South Asian survivors of gender-based violence who took part in their 2022 pilot storytelling workshop. The program consisted of a Storytelling Workshop, ongoing Story Circles, & additional opportunities to build community and continue working on stories (learn more about the program). The Zine was co-created by and features the stories of survivors, told through narratives, poetry, videos, artwork, and more. One of the pieces featured in the Zine is Sahiyo co-founder and Executive Director Mariya Taher’s story Shattered Silences, from Sahiyo’s Voices to End FGM/C project. SOAR seeks to empower South Asian survivors with the goal of moving towards a future free of violence.

View the Zine here.

The Women Deliver 2023 Conference (WD 2023) is scheduled to take place in-person, as well as virtually, from 17-20 July 2023, in Kigali, Rwanda. The conference is expected to convene 6000 people in Kigali, and over 200,000 people online. 

Before the opening ceremony on July 17th, there will be a series of Pre-Conferences held over two days from July 15-16th. Sahiyo is incredibly proud to co-host and be part of the planning of this year’s Pre-conference on FGM/C -Catalyzing Global Action to End FGM/C. 

About FGM/C Preconference:

The FGM/C Pre-Conference, Catalyzing Global Action to End FGM/C, will be a space of shared solidarity, bringing together activists and organizations working to end FGM/C across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and America. It will promote knowledge exchange, interregional collaboration, and global cooperation with the aim of catalyzing collective action and movement building, designing actionable commitments, and working toward substantive structural change.

Hosts: The Global Platform to End FGM/C, Orchid Project, ARROW, End FGM European Network, Sahiyo, Equality Now, Amref Health Africa, The Girl Generation, IPPF ARAB World Region, U.S. End FGM/C Network, and End FGM Canada Network

Date and time: July 16, 2023 from 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM CAT

More information: https://www.wd2023.org/pre-conferences

About Women Deliver 2023:

The Women Deliver 2023 Conference, using intersectional feminist principles, will address a wide range of issues impacting girls and women– including (but not limited to) climate change, gender- based violence (GBV) and unpaid care work. The theme of WD2023 is Spaces, Solidarity and Solutions. Learn more about the Conference here.  

History of the Global Platform: 

At the FGM/C Pre-Conference ahead of Women Deliver 2019 in Vancouver Canada, the organisations that would come to make up the Global Platform for Action to end FGM/C came together in recognition of the imperative for us to work together - as civil society, donors and allies – to make FGM/C a practice of the past. This represented the first time that global FGM/C activists from Africa to Europe, from Australia to Asia and to North America came together to unite voices around a global call to action to end FGM/C. The Asia Network to end FGM/C was also formed during Women Deliver 2019.

The global and regional partnerships that were formed on that occasion have grown and strengthened their internal cooperation, working towards common advocacy goals at the regional and global levels respectively.

By Sakina Sharp

Sahiyo’s annual Activists Retreat is a great way for both women and men connected to the Bohra community to discuss the issue of khatna, or female genital cutting (FGC). This is my third year attending the event, and I appreciate that this Retreat offers a safe space to have conversations about khatna. The first year I attended the event, I wondered if I belonged; I did not know if there was a space for someone like me who grew up Bohra, but does not currently fulfill all the requirements of the culture. I also wondered if there was a space for those Bohras who do “all the things,” and stand up against the practice of khatna. 

When I attended the Retreat, I realized that there was space for both. I found the Retreat to be cathartic, and it gave me an opportunity to process what had happened to me as a child. During this recent Retreat, the question of belonging came up again, but this time with a different flavor. Some participants wondered if they belonged because they had not personally undergone FGC. We all wonder if we belong, and the truth is, we all do. Men belong because we need their voices in the rooms where discussions on FGC are taking place. Women who have not undergone FGC belong because they can prevent future generations from holding on to this practice. Practicing Bohras belong because FGC is not a religious practice; we can be religious and still stand against khatna. Survivors belong because we know first hand the impact of khatna. All of our voices are important, and we all belong.

Learn more about Sahiyo’s Activists Retreat here.

At Sahiyo, we believe in creating a space where all voices are heard and celebrated. We acknowledge the unique experiences of Queer survivors within the FGC community and aim to provide support, inclusivity, and joy! In celebration of Pride Month, we asked members of our community what joy looks like to them: Umme Kulsoom Arif "My grandmother made a living making lace borders for dupattas and ridas when my father and his siblings were growing up, and now I make blankets for my family and friends. Though our relationship is not always an easy one, separated by generations and miles of ocean, I still have the ponchos, purses, and scarves she made me, her love and determination woven into every beautiful stitch. I may not have the patience she had to make intricate lace patterns, but I like to think I make up for it by crafting blankets large enough to wrap yourself in — my own way of showing the people I love how much they matter to me. The two blankets shown are ones I made for my parents — and one of them has over three miles of yarn in it!"

Check out Sahiyo's Instagram for more this Pride Month!