Tim Dunn/CapeCod.com.
WEST BARNSTABLE – Cape Cod Community College and the Independence House collaborated with SANE Nurses on Thursday to host The Clothesline Project display.
This exhibit is designed to increase public awareness of the impact of violence against women through the hanging of several t-shirts on clotheslines in the center of the CCCC campus.
It was displayed from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. along pathways located at the center of the campus. The dramatic display features 800 t-shirts decorated by women affected by violence.
“The t-shirts tell the stories of survivors and sometimes the family members. It’s all forms of abuse – sexual assault, childhood sexual abuse, domestic violence. Every shirt is different and it’s meant for healing and awareness,” said Chris Morin, Director of Prevention Education at Independence House.
“This display today has several hundred. Most of the time we just show a few.”
Tim Dunn/CapeCod.com.
A Candlelight Vigil was held at 5:30 p.m. at the same location to show support for victims and survivors.
Speakers at the Candlelight Vigil included Executive Director of Independence House Lysetta Hurge-Putman and Director of SANE Nurses Kathleen Ecker. The two reflected on the issues of violence against women and share words from survivors of domestic assault.
Morin says the Clothesline Project originated on Cape Cod in 1990 with a display of 31 shirts on a village green in Hyannis.
“Sexual assault survivors got together wanting to create an awareness because it’s such a tough subject to talk about. So, they took the idea from the AIDS Quilt as far as something that’s visible for the community,” Morin explained.
The goal was to educate the public, break the silence of victims, and bear witness to one issue – violence against women. Since its inception, the Clothesline Project has expanded to venues across the U.S. and in several foreign countries.
For more information on the international project to end violence against women, visit theclotheslineproject.org.
By TIM DUNN, CapeCod.com News Center
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