In our latest Sahiyo Discusses event, which took place on September 21st, we were joined by Farzana Doctor, to discuss her newly released poetry book, You Still Look the Same. A profoundly moving collection of poems, Farzana explores multiple themes and includes a section on being a survivor of female genital cutting (FGC). At the event itself we listened to her poetry, which was subsequently followed by a discussion and questions for Farzana, focusing on methods for healing grief and trauma, alongside her process for writing such personal insights into her life.
Farzana is a writer, activist and psychotherapist, currently volunteering with WeSpeakOut, a global group that works to end FGC in her community and also writes for Sahiyo’s Dear Maasi, a sex and relationships column on Sahiyo’s blog for FGC survivors. Evident in her ‘agony aunt’ style responses, as well as her poetry, Farzana is not afraid to shine light on difficult and painful topics: the pain of heart break and dating at middle-age, cultural and familial responses to her same sex relationship, and misogyny and racism that has followed her from childhood. Though heart-wrenching and emotionally stirring, Farzana’s voice also rings with humour and strength, holding the ability to switch between light-hearted anecdotes about online dating and a fiery condemnation of those who stand by and silently watch FGC take place.
Sahiyo believes storytelling to be an important part of the work to end FGC, simultaneously uplifting survivors' experiences to give them a voice while increasing awareness and conversations around the practice to end it. Farzana’s writing is a brilliant example of this, and we thank her for joining Sahiyo Discusses and giving us the opportunity to talk with her about her work and experiences.
Thank you to everyone who came and donated.
Follow these links if you are still interested in donating to Sahiyo or reading Farzana’s poetry collection.