Addressing Sexual Violence at Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church
October 20, 2009
Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church Silences Sexual Violence
From the early evening of the 16th of October until the early afternoon of the 18th of October, I was very fortunate to be able to participate and attend the historic Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church’s her/historic (founded in 1867), groundbreaking, transformational, uplifting Holistic Hurt, Wholistic Healing: The Church’s Call to Silence Sexual Violence conference in Richmond, VA.
I was raised Sufi Muslim and I practice Vipassana Meditation as taught by S.N. Goenka in the tradition of Sayagi U Ba Khin. My most recent ancestral maternal and paternal roots, however, are grounded in the Baptist and African Methodist Episcopalian (AME) Churches. Through my journey called life, I have witnessed and experienced the universality of the Ultimate Truth. As a result, I embrace all spiritual and religious traditions that teach and practice the Ultimate Truth.
I have been fortunate with countless opportunities to attend and present at numerous amazing and life changing conferences throughout the United States and internationally in Europe, Africa, and Asia. For the first time, however, I was invited by a Church to share the literal and metaphorical sacred space with Rev. Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon, who as the first African American woman ordained by the Presbyterian Church, is a ground breaker, mapmaker, trailblazer who has paved the way for so many womanist/feminist Religious Scholars, Ethicists and Theologians globally; and my Sister Survivor Rev. Dr. Monica A. Coleman whose visionary text The Dinah Project: A Handbook for Congregational Response to Sexual Violence, is being used at churches, colleges, seminaries, universities, throughout the United States.
This conference was the embodiment of Rev. Dwylene Butler’s Master’s Thesis “Holistic Hurt, Wholistic Healing: The Dance of Redemption for Survivors of Sexual Violence,” which she developed and wrote under the guidance of Rev. Dr. Cannon, who was her advisor at Union Theological Seminary in Richmond. In 2008, when Rev. Butler shared her Thesis with Pastor Tyrone Nelson, he asked Rev. Butler to host a conference so that their church could break its silence about rape and other violations of women.
In less than 14-months, an entire weekend, which included a performance of “The Heart of the Matter: A Journey Toward Healing” Monologues,” followed by a discussion facilitated by Rev. Patricia Jones-Turner; a screening and discussion of NO! The Rape Documentary, an interactive healing talk/presentation, led by Rev. Dr. Monica Coleman, on The Dinah Project, eight workshops facilitated by clergy, rape crisis counselors, cultural workers, scholars, and activists from which participants were able to attend three, The Dance of Redemption- Mimes, Liturgical and Praise Dancers from Richmond and surrounding areas gathered to minister in movement to songs of healing, strength, deliverance, and redemption; the entire conference concluded with the morning worship, where Dr. Katie Cannon as the guest preacher gave a powerful sermon titled “Project For A New Day.”
Women and Men were active participants with the organization of this conference, which, from my point of view, ran seamlessly… There wasn’t a division of labor based on the traditional gendered norms. That is to say, that Men played an active role in providing childcare and helping with the preparation of the food. Women played an active and visible leadership role throughout the weekend.
During Sunday morning’s worship service, the liturgy was taken from Sister Rev. Dr. Monica Coleman’s powerful “Dinah Project.” Statistics about rape, domestic violence, and other forms of violence against women and children we talked about from the pulpit during worship service on Sunday morning. Pastor Nelson invited both Sister Rev. Dr. Monica and I to offer some additional words about our work from the Pulpit during Sunday morning’s worship service. We both spoke to the entire congregation about our healing work from the perspective of survivors of sexual violence.
Equally if not more important Pastor Nelson declared a commitment, from the pulpit, on the part of Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church to be an active participant of the movement, in Richmond, VA, to addressing all forms of violence perpetuated against women and children. He stressed that the work had just begun at Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church with the conference while being explicitly clear that this work would be an ongoing effort. This would not be something that only happened once a year at an annual conference but a consistent effort because violence against women doesn’t only happen in October during Domestic Violence Awareness Month and April during Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
The Holistic Hurt, Wholistic Healing: The Church’s Call to Silence Sexual Violence was truly an inter-generational conference where people who participated and attended ranged in age from teenagers to over 70-years of age. What was especially powerful for me is that the visionaries for this conference Rev. Butler and Pastor Nelson are both several years under 40-years old. This is very important to note because the ongoing lack of respect for the visions of leaders/visionaries who happen to be young adults is still very pervasive in this country in all communities regardless of race/culture/ethnicity. And yet, I would argue that it is precisely because of Rev. Butler’s and Pastor Nelson’s ages, in this moment and at this time, that they had the vision for this conference. I want to be clear that the conference was made possible through a collaborative effort of many who are very diverse in age. In fact, it was Sister Rev. Dr. Katie Cannon who strongly encouraged Rev. Butler and Pastor Nelson to invite Monica and I to present at their conference. So, this is not about not honoring/paying homage to those who are our elders. It is solely about recognizing that vision/knowledge/wisdom isn’t solely based on one’s age.
It’s very important to underscore that this entire conference was FREE. This included free day care and free food for everyone. Everyone was welcomed and no one was turned away.
The main plenary sessions were videotaped. The workshops/small group sessions were not recorded out of respect for people’s privacy/confidentiality. If/when those sessions that were recorded are made available to the public, I will most definitely spread the word.
To say that I was moved the entire weekend by what I witnessed and experienced is a major understatement. The reality that most victim-survivors never go to a rape crisis center or seek therapy own their own. If they are religious, they tend to turn to their places of worship to try to find solace. Based on this, I believe it’s critical and should be non-negotiable that all leaders of religious institutions (Churches, Mosques, Synagogues, Temples) should take a very vocal and visible stance against all forms of sexual violence perpetuated against women, men and children. Then perhaps from there victim/survivors will not view going to a rape crisis center or seeking therapy as an “either/or” with regards to their spiritual/religious practice. It is a fact that victims take much longer to heal if they do not receive the proper support and tools that they need.
Through their demonstrated actions this past weekend and expressed commitment from October 18 forward, The Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church in Richmond, VA took a bold, courageous and necessary step in playing a direct role in ensuring that victims of sexual and domestic violence receive all of the help and support that they will need on their journey to becoming survivors.
I am grateful, honored, and humbled to have been both a witness and a participant.
While it took a village to make the conference a reality, I want to personally express my heartfelt gratitude to Rev. Dwylene Butler, Pastor Tyrone Nelson, Sister Regina Pettaway, Sister Lynne Lancaster for their direct, metaphorical hands on support of my and NO!’s presence at the conference.
The Church’s Call to Silence Sexual Violence
September 26, 2009
Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church Calls For An End to Sexual Violence
From October?16 – 18, 2009, the historic Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church in Richmond, VA, will host the her/historic, groundbreaking “Holistic Hurt, Wholistic Healing: The Church’s Call to Silence Sexual Violence” conference. The featured keynote presenters are Rev. Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon, who is a leading Christian ethicist in United States, and the first African American woman ordained in the United Presbyterian Church (USA); Rev. Dr. Monica A. Coleman, is an ordained elder of the African Methodist Episcopal Chruch and the author of The Dinah Project: a Handbook for Congregational Response to Sexual Violence; and Sister Aishah Shahidah Simmons who is the producer/writer/director of NO! The Rape Documentary.
THIS CONFERENCE IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.
While NO! The Rape Documentary has definitely been purchased by and used as an educational healing tool in Churches and Mosques across the United States and internationally, this conference is the FIRST time that Aishah Shahidah Simmons has ever been invited by a church or mosque to both present NO! and engage in dialogue about the critical role that religious institutions must play in addressing and ultimately ending sexual violence. She is both honored and humbled that Rev. Tyrone Nelson, Pastor, and Rev. Dwylene Butler, Church Business Administrator, invited her to present with Drs. Cannon and Coleman; and to participate in what she believes will be powerful, soul stirring, and healing weekend.
“October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. October 16-18, we invite you to Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church for a life changing conference. Join pastors, ministers, Women’s Ministry leaders, Youth leaders, college students and others in this conference exposing the prevalence of sexual violence in our communities and what we can do to silence sexual violence.”
For detailed information about this FREE conference,?please click here?(http://holistichealing.weebly.com).
Aishah Shahidah Simmons on Saturday Mornings with Joy Keys
September 26, 2009
Talking About Ending Rape on “Saturday Mornings with Joy Keys”
Aishah Shahidah Simmons was the featured guest on the September 26, 2009 edition of Saturday Mornings with Joy Keys, which is featured on Blog Talk Radio. In 30 commercial free minutes, Keys and Simmons covered the waterfront on the sobering reality of rape, other forms of sexual violence in African-American communities. Keys and Simmons engaged in a very lively and passionate conversation about these often difficult and taboo issues while offering solutions on how to heal from the trauma and equally as important on how to stop it. Click here to listen to the program in its entirety.
NO! in Open Frame Film Festival in New Delhi
September 26, 2009
NO! -One of 50 Documentaries Selected in New Delhi, India
NO! The Rape Documentary was among the invited 50 documentary and short feature films from 22 countries, which were featured in the Open Frame Film Festival, which is organized by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PBST) in New Delhi India. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to attend the festival but was there in spirit through NO!. This is the second international film festival in India where NO! was featured. In 2008, NO! received the Best Documentary Award at the India International Women’s Film Festival.
Click here to view the Film Festival line up.
Click here to read an article on the film festival.
Skye Ward | NO! The Rape Documentary Testimonial
November 17, 2008
“NO! deserve a resounding YES for it’s bold approach to confronting the taboos, controversy and horrors of the sexual assault of Black women/girls. NO! is a potent healing balm and a fierce weapon. NO! is a vital tool for soul revival and spirit restoration amongst sexual assault survivors, advocates and educators alike. Accept love-preview NO!”
Skye Ward, Freelance Writer and Blogger
Skyeview: A Sistahs’ View of the World
www.kuma2.net/skyview/
Dr. Mehret Mandefro | HIV Prevention Work | Women’s Health
October 14, 2008
NO! is a critical tool for all public health educators and practitioners concerned with women’s health. The medical and public health consequences of trauma related to sexual violence are profound and alarming. Moreover, there is a connection between trauma and HIV which makes this film particularly important for HIV prevention work. I highly recommend it to medical professional and public health professionals examining this intersection.
Mehret Mandefro, M.D., MSc
TruthAIDS, Founding Director
Robert Wood Johnson Health and Society Scholar
University of Pennsylvania
Robin Morgan | NO! The Rape Documentary Testimonial
October 8, 2008
“Did I ever tell you how utterly superb I found NO! The Rape Documentary? My god, it’s not only a doco, it’s a work of art. Truly devastating. Yet hopeful. Even beautiful. And deadly. Thank you for having the guts and vision to have seen it through. It really is one helluva remarkable work.”
Robin Morgan, is an award-winning poet, novelist, political theorist, feminist activist, journalist, editor, and best-selling author. A former editor-in chief of Ms. magazine, she is founder of The Sisterhood is Global Institute and, most recently, a co-founder and Board Member of the Women’s Media Center.
Harriet Hirshorn | NO! The Rape Documentary | Media Activism
October 8, 2008
“I am still thinking about your film, which was really interesting, beautiful, brave, inspiring, truly activist media, truly media activism… I think this is the first time in my life that I can actually glimpse the possibility that rape is something that could be stopped. I also think you have found a brilliant way to organize.”
Harriet Hirshorn, Producer/Director, Our Lives Our In Our Hands
Testimonial para NO! una película documental sobre la violación sexual y la curación en comunidades afroamericanas
September 16, 2008
Estoy tan agradecida que una mujer afrodescendiente lo hizo una prioridad decir la verdad, clamorosa y clara, sobre la violencia sexual que sufrimos. Aishah Shahidah Simmons debe ser reconocida como héroe por todos los y las afrodescendientes, porque su documental fue un labor de amor que puede ser el catalizador que necesitamos para empezar a sanar nuestra comunidad entera-mujeres y hombres, niñas y niños. ¡No más vergüenza ni miedo! ¡Gracias, Aishah!
Lori Robinson, Editor
VidaAfroLatina.com
editor “at” vidaafrolatina “dot” com
Rev. Reanae McNeal | NO! The Rape Documentary Testimonial
September 16, 2008
NO! is one of the most powerful documentaries of our time. Finally an uncompromising film that speaks the truths of African-American women’s lives. Aishah is a pioneer and visionary and I was proud to be a part of this documentary that is affecting and will continue to affect women around the world. The physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual significance on the consciousness of African-American women and anyone who dares to look at this film is undeniable. I am delighted that Aishah birhted this documentary out of her womb spirit despite the labor pains it took to give birth to it. I applaud you for your perserverence and hard work to produce a torch for the next generation of girls and women. Aishah as a revolutionary I salute you and as my sister I bless you. Thanks for allowing me to be a part of this groundbreaking work and giving me a platform to share my story with others. If you are interested in human rights and the advancement of humanity you must see this film!
Rev. Reanae McNeal, International Performing Artist, Motivational Speaker, & Trainer
Imani Revelations
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