Clothesline project aims to raise awareness about domestic violence
To provide another avenue for people to break the silence often surrounding their experiences with domestic violence, two organizations teamed up to bring the Clothesline Project to Utah State University’s campus for National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Both USU Sexual Assault and Anti-Violence Information (SAAVI) and Citizens Against Physical and Sexual Abuse (CAPSA) wanted to share the stories of female survivors of violence with the rest of USU, said SAAVI advocate Katie Kinsey. So the groups came together to instigate another year of the Clothesline Project.
“In the U.S., 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner,” according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
According to USU women and gender program coordinator Sarah Timmerman, who created the poster put up across campus, the Clothesline Project “is a visual display of shirts with graphic messages and illustrations. [They] have been designed by women survivors of violence or by someone who loves a woman who has been killed.”
The sayings on the shirts vary. “My childhood was stolen from me by someone I dearly loved,” one shirt said. Another said, “No longer silent, I am courageous.” Someone wrote below a drawing, “He loves manipulation, NOT people.”
“We get together to build the shirt supply every year,” Kinsey said. “We collaborate with CAPSA a ton.” She said not even a third of the shirts they have are put up. “Volunteers, or anyone who is interested, can put up shirts and posters or change the shirts once a week,” Kinsey said.
Kinsey got involved with the Clothesline Project because, as a social work major, she is required to be part of a project. However, she has learned much since becoming a SAAVI advocate. “Each shirt represents a person who was hurt in Cache Valley. It’s a hard pill to swallow,” Kinsey said. “These are real stories of real people. I appreciate my life and story more.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “One in three women in Utah will experience domestic violence, compared to one in four nationwide.”
“I cry every time, even though I’m exposed to this world everyday,” SAAVI outreach and prevention coordinator Felicia Gallegos said. “The display has brought people to the office for services.” She said shirts are used for the displays to grab people’s attention and to protest against comments of victims’ clothing being the cause of the violence.
Gallegos continued, “Hearing these stories and seeing these clothes is impactful and humbling. These shirts were done by locals. We’re not removed from the violence, and we need to have conversations about it.” According to Gallegos, awareness needs to be spread when it comes to interpersonal violence.
The project’s slogan “Break the Silence” is a call to action for survivors, according to Gallegos. She also said it now applies to sexual assault with the development of the Me Too Movement. “There’s so much pressure to keep the violence private. Stopping survivors from being trapped in a relationship is what really matters,” Gallegos said.
“Most female and male victims of rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner experienced some form of intimate partner violence for the first time before 25 years of age (69% of female victims, 53% of male victims),” according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
Students can give feedback about the Clothesline Project by scanning the QR code on the project’s posters around campus, which will take them to a survey. Those who complete the survey will also be entered into a drawing for a $25 gift card to Angie’s Restaurant.
While SAAVI is focused on students, faculty and staff, CAPSA has the opportunity to work with the community, according to Kinsey.
The Clothesline Project originated in Hyannis, Massachusetts in 1990, according to the website “The Clothesline Project.”
“Members of Cape Cod’s Women’s Defense Agenda learned that, during the same time 58,000 soldiers were killed in the Vietnam War, 51,000 U.S. women were killed by the men who claimed to love them,” according to the site. The group’s acquired knowledge led to the creation of the Clothesline Project, which started with only 31 shirts, as stated in the site.
According to Gallegos, the Clothesline Project most likely started with both the USU Center for Women and Gender and SAAVI working together on the project. This may have been around 15 years ago.
If you (or anyone you know) are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233. The hotline’s website also has an online chat available 24/7.