As part of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the Feminism Club at IUPUC, in conjunction with IUPUC’s Office of Student Affairs, Turning Point Domestic Violence Services, and the Indiana Playwrights Circle (IPC), has launched Voices Against Domestic Violence: A Showcase of Monologues for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The project features a webpage containing video monologues written by Indiana authors that reveal each writer’s unique insight into the lasting effects of domestic violence.
Historically, each October the Feminism Club at IUPUC, in partnership with Turning Point Domestic Violence Services, has sponsored a Clothesline Project in which students hung t-shirts on a clothesline strung across campus representing lives lost to domestic violence. This year, they hope to reach even more people by transitioning to an online format with
Voices Against Domestic Violence, which features nine monologues written and performed by Indiana authors hosted online at
iupuc.edu/dvam.
“The pain and trauma that domestic violence leaves behind takes on many forms. The authors of these monologues have brilliantly captured the turmoil, pain, aching, and rage that survivors feel,” said Olivia Fahey, President of the Feminism Club at IUPUC.
The authors and the works presented include:
-
Call from Sarah by Mia Baillie
-
Silencium by Patty Blanchfield
-
Be Water by Wendy Brown
-
Sara by Michael Donohue
-
Breaking the Cycle by Marcia Eppich-Harris
-
The Overcomer by Janice Morris Neal
-
Starting Small / The Survivor by Elisabeth Giffin Speckman
-
NOLA – 60 Years Old, Female by Georgeanna Smith Wade
-
She Said NO! Let her Go, Let Her Grow, Let Her Glow by Latrice Young
The Indiana Playwrights Circle worked with the authors to create videos of each monologue, using members to direct and perform them. One of the authors, IPC Member Marcia Eppich-Harris, not only wrote a monologue herself , but was the creative director behind the filming.
“The process of putting this show together has really been a journey — not only in confronting the history of violence that I wrote about, but also in working with the other writers and actors to bring these stories to life,” said Eppich-Harris. “We wanted to make people aware of the suffering that individuals go through in domestic violence situations, but we also wanted to honor the courage that it takes to heal from them and to consciously break cycles of violence.”
Turning Point Domestic Violence Services in Columbus, Indiana has partnered with the IUPUC Feminism Club for several years on the Clothesline Project and is continuing that support with Voices Against Domestic Violence. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 1 in 3 women (35.6%) and more than 1 in 4 men (28.5%) in the U.S. have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
“It is our belief at Turning Point that everyone can do something to help us work toward our mission of eliminating and preventing domestic and dating violence,” said Stephanie Cunningham. “As a Turning Point Prevention Team Member, one of the monologues that stands out to me the most is Call from Sarah. Part of our prevention programing is discussing how to help friends who are experiencing abusive relationships.”
In addition to having the video monologues online, there will be a free live event streamed on the IUPUC Feminism Club’s Facebook page on October 10th, at 7:00 p.m. Audience members can watch together virtually and connect with others through commenting during the show.