By Maryah Haidery Growing up as a member of the Dawoodi Bohra Community in the United States is a challenging experience, especially for women. It’s like precariously walking across a tightrope while trying to balance two vastly different worlds. In one world, there are the positive benefits that come from belonging to a community rich …
Continue reading My Sahiyo U.S. Activists Retreat Reflection
By Zehra Patwa, WeSpeakOut Retreat [ri-treet]: a period of group withdrawal for prayer, meditation, study, or instruction. When I initially signed up for Sahiyo’s retreat for Bohra anti-FGC activists in the US, I thought it would be a good opportunity to network, share ideas, and develop strategies. What I wasn’t prepared for was the incredibly …
Continue reading Sahiyo U.S. Activists Retreat: A Reflection
(This post was originally published on the blog of Georgetown University’s Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, the Berkley Forum) By Mariya Taher, MSW, MFA In this day and age when social media has penetrated our lives, 24-hour news cycles shape our worldviews, and there is never enough time to process the influx of …
By Anonymous The aim of Sahiyo’s third annual Activists’ Retreat in the United States was to continue to work toward building a network of U.S.-based Bohra activists against female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) by strengthening relationships with one another, sharing best practices, and providing tools for activists to utilize in their advocacy work moving forward. Below, …
Continue reading A reflection on Sahiyo’s virtual U.S. Activists’ Retreat
By Anonymous I had the opportunity to attend Sahiyo’s second virtual Activists’ Retreat (my first one) last month and absolutely loved every second of it. I had been feeling extreme Zoom fatigue leading up to the weekend, and wasn’t exactly looking forward to spending an entire weekend on Zoom. But as soon as the weekend …
By Amena I attended Sahiyo’s Activists’ Retreat because it stands for a cause I believe in to end female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) for future generations of girls. This was the first time I was able to connect with people who have a similar stance on this cause and meet allies and people who have been …
Continue reading A reflection on Sahiyo’s Activists’ Retreat: A sense of belonging
by Chandni Shiyal Sahiyo administrative assistant One day before Sahiyo’s first activists’ training retreat for Bohras held in February in Mumbai, I was a bit nervous about how it would pan out in terms of arrangement and its overall functioning. But at the same time, I was excited to meet many of the new participants …
Continue reading My experience at Sahiyo’s first activists’ retreat in India
Sahiyo held its third annual Activist Retreat in the United States via Zoom from April 10-12. The aim of the retreat was to continue to work toward building a network of U.S.-based Bohra activists against female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) by strengthening relationships with one another, sharing best practices, and providing tools for activists to utilize …
The first annual Sahiyo Activists’ Retreats in the US and in India were organized in 2018 for advocates working to end Female Genital Cutting (FGC). The primary aim of these retreats in each country is to bring together ‘activists’ speaking out against FGC — people who work either publicly or anonymously to raise community awareness …
By Maryum Saifee In late March, I participated in Sahiyo’s Second Annual Retreat for survivors and allies in the campaign to end female genital mutilation (FGM). Attendees from the first retreat commented on how the program had more than doubled in size to over 20 this year. As an FGM survivor who reluctantly stumbled into …
Continue reading Sahiyo’s Second Annual Retreat: A Space for Healing and Reflection
SAHIYO 