The Legacy of Rape
NGO PROOF’s Legacy of Rape exhibition in Geneva and Washington shows photographs and text documenting the stories of survivors of sexual violence.
"The Legacy of Rape" gives voice to those who have survived rape in conflict zones.
Rape has become one of the most prevalent weapons of war employed in countries worldwide. Hundreds of thousands of survivors of sexual violence from Nepal to Colombia now live in silence and shame without even the most basic services for treatment and mechanisms for accountability.
This project seeks to enhance the awareness within the international community and inspire action and accountability in policy-making at both the local and international levels. Target audiences include policymakers, academics, legal experts, and program specialists whose reach extends beyond the international stage to the field.
About the Exhibit
"The Legacy of Rape" is a moving series of first-hand accounts from women who have survived sexual violence during times of armed conflict.
In speaking out, women from Colombia, The Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal, and Bosnia and Herzegovina courageously shed light on the impunity many perpetrators enjoy, despite victims' limited recourse for justice. In doing so, these women not only encourage others to speak out, but also make visible the need for policy changes at regional, national, and international levels.
Exhibit Hire
Contact PROOF if you would like to know more about hiring the exhibit, or would like to receive additional information. We also arrange educational workshops, lectures, and provide resources for teachers.
Travel Log
December 2015
Columbia University Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality
July 2015
War Art Reporting and Memory (WARM) festival, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (as "My Body a War Zone").
November 2014
International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence in Conflict, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Sept 28 - Oct 31, 2014
Yale University
May 15 - June 30, 2014
Art Museum of the University of Magdalena, Colombia
March 10 - May, 2014
Santa Marta, University of Los Andes, Colombia
March 2013
11th International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights, Geneva, Switzerland
February 12 - 16, 2013
The Missing Peace Symposium at the United States Institute of Peace, Washington D.C
2012 - 2013
Eastern Congo, American Bar Association Legal clinics
About the Photographers
Pete Muller
Pete Muller | Democratic Republic of Congo
Pete Muller is an award winning photojournalist and multimedia reporter based in Nairobi, Kenya. His work explores the challenges of nationalism, modern states, war, poverty, and social unrest.
http://www.petemullerphotography.com/
Blake Fitch
Blake Fitch | Colombia
Blake Fitch works in fine art and documentary photography. Fitch has photographed extensively in the U.S. and Central and South America, focusing on themes of identity, rites of passage, civil rights, and belonging. Her work has been exhibited internationally and is held in the collections of several museums.
Laura Boushnak. Photo courtesy of Peacexpeace.org.
Laura Boushnak | Bosnia and Herzegovina
Laura Boushnak is a Palestinian photographer born in Kuwait. She began her photography career covering news for the Associated Press in Lebanon. Her work has been published in The New York Times, The Guardian, National Geographic, and Le Monde.
NayanTara Gurung Kakshapati. Photo: Sarah Holocombe
NayanTara Gurung Kakshapati | Nepal
NayanTara Gurung Kakshapati is a Nepali photojournalist who lives in Kathmandu. She is documenting her country by focusing on a project titled "The New Nepal" and its dynamic struggle to find peace after the decade-long civil war (1996 to 2006). In 2007, NayanTara co-founded photo.circle, a photography collective that offers Nepali photographers a space to exhibit, publish, and market their work in Nepal, across the region, and internationally.
Project Team
Leora Kahn
Project Lead and Curator
Leora Kahn
Willhemina Wahlin
Art Direction and Exhibition Design
Willhemina Wahlin
“Hundreds of thousands of survivors of sexual violence from Nepal to Colombia now live in silence and shame without even the most basic services for treatment and mechanisms for accountability.”