Can we successfully create a virtual space that builds a micro-community & enables catharsis for womxn and gender non-conforming folx who experience or have experienced street harassment & gender based violence, just by the simple act of giving them the power to own their narrative through collaborative, digital storytelling?
This question was the beginning of The Mira Project. I am an India based clinical psychologist & community catalyst who realised how a social media platform like Tumblr could be harnessed to create a unique, interactive space for womxn who wanted to speak up and against gender based violence especially street harassment and build an active, engaged community. Coming from a country like mine which is a hotbed for severe incidents of street harassment, the conception involved asking ourselves - Why has street harassment been normalized in most cultures across the world?
So far, we have collected & curated narratives from Rwanda, Egypt, Scotland, Hong Kong, Mauritius Singapore, India, Australia, USA and many other countries. Our youngest Mira is 16 & our oldest is 65 (so far).
We are a community, we are unstilled & multitudes. We are akin mandalas : interconnectedness, songs & stories threaded infinitely. To share is the ability to secure our own stories and not allow them to be scattered at the mercy of our traumas.
Our goal is #1MillionMiras
Here, each voice matters. Here, we take space.
Without apologies.