SIlence Speaks

silencespeaks — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:07:47 -0700

Silence Speaks is an international digital storytelling initiative that provides survivors and witnesses of violence and other forms of trauma with a safe, supportive environment in which to tell their stories through a participatory media production process.

We partner with grassroots groups and not-for-profit organizations in the U.S. and beyond to offer workshops in which participants share and bear witness to each other's stories, write and record voice-over narration, collect and generate photos and video clips, and learn via hands-on computer tutorials how to combine these materials into short, first-person videos. These media pieces challenge journalistic legacies of voyeurism and naturalized representation by placing control over what stories are told directly into the hands of those most effected by violence: people who survive it.

A project of the Center for Digital Storytelling, Silence Speaks has, over the past eight years, conducted a total of 32 intensive workshops. Our process is modified as needed to accommodate the languages, literacies and technologies of a given setting, defining participation on local terms. The guiding vision is to listen deeply, facilitate reflection and transformation, and encourage workshop participants to become involved in collective action to support economic and social justice. The stories are used in non-commercial contexts only, as tools for training, community organizing, and policy advocacy focused on promoting dialogue about historical legacies of trauma and supporting human rights globally.

For more information about our work, please contact:

Amy Hill
001-510-682-8311
amylenita@storycenter.org
www.silencespeaks.org

silencespeaks's Content

SIlence Speaks