
Sixteen Days of Activism Against Gender Violence
The Afghan Women’s Writing Project is pleased to participate in the global Sixteen Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign from Nov. 25 through Dec. 10—International Human Rights Day.
The Afghan Women’s Writing Project is pleased to participate in the global Sixteen Days of Activism Against Gender Violence campaign from Nov. 25 through Dec. 10—International Human Rights Day.
The work presented here represents just a few of the essays and poems written by AWWP writers in honor of International Women’s Day over the last several years. Please join our writers in celebrating IWD on Wednesday, March 8, 2017.
Two AWWP writers survived a terrorist attack last month by armed gunmen at American University of Afghanistan. The August 24 attack killed thirteen people, including students, teachers, and security guards. The two girls tell their stories for AWWP here. AUAF remains closed since the attack.
We now proudly share with you our cooperative project with StoryCenter’s Silence Speaks initiative, launched to further amplify Afghan women’s voices by use of video storytelling. By presenting their personal stories as recordings accompanied by their own imagery, we believe these brave women’s voices will touch viewers deeply.
Update 7 October: We have added the sixth and final video to this series — “Who Says I Can’t Ride a Bike?” by Raha. Please click Read More to watch.
AWWP writers share with us many powerful stories of the mothers in their lives. This Mother’s Day, we will honor Afghan mothers by publishing new essays and poems written in their honor. You can honor the mothers in your life and help us support Afghan women writers with a special Mother’s Day donation.
“I remember in 2011 when I first heard of AWWP, I felt that a door had opened for me to reach my dream. AWWP is like an open notebook and each page expresses the dreams of a different hero-woman. AWWP lets women raise their voices even from behind the burqa, and shows that we can start to bring change, equality, and democracy. Who knows? Our writing might change our lives, and not only ours, but those of the people who read our work.” –Nasima
When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, taking a photo was a crime. After the regime fell from power in 2001, a fledgling free press emerged and a photography revolution was born. Now, as foreign troops and media withdraw, Afghanistan is left to stand on its own, and so are its journalists. Set in a modern Afghanistan bursting with color and character, FRAME BY FRAME follows four Afghan photojournalists as they navigate an emerging and dangerous media landscape—reframing Afghanistan for the world, and for themselves. Through cinema vérité, intimate interviews, powerful photojournalism, and never-before-seen archival footage shot in secret during the Taliban regime, the film connects audiences with four humans in the pursuit of the truth.
Sullivan Street Press’s Deborah Emin called Washing the Dust from Our Hearts (Grayson Books) “One of the Best Poetry Books of 2015.” Bustle’s Emily Ce Miller declared the Afghan Women’s Writing Project anthology “beautiful, brave, and inspiring all at once.”
Join us this International Women’s Day for an evening of Afghan poetry, musical performance, and visual arts with Blue Wings and the Afghan Women’s Writing Project. Refreshments will be served. All donations will support Afghan Women’s Writing Project workshops for women and girls in Afghanistan.