Red quilts between the Capitol and Washington Monument tell a story of trauma and survival.
It鈥檚 the Monument Quilt, art that covers outdoor public spaces to create a healing environment, promote a culture of consent and show sexual assault survivors that their voices matter.
Ana Rodney, who was collecting yoga mats after a class next to a group of quilts, told 草莓传媒 there are about 3,000 different quilt squares on the mall, each one with a story of survival, support and empowerment.
鈥淭here are a number of messages that speak to the fact that it鈥檚 not your fault. It doesn鈥檛 matter what I was wearing, it doesn鈥檛 matter what I was doing, that this is my body, and I have autonomy over my body,鈥� she said.
The Monument Quilt display is arranged to spell out the words 鈥淵ou are not alone,鈥� and in Spanish, 鈥淣o estas solx.鈥�
Folayan told 草莓传媒 that she is a survivor of rape and incest and feels empowered 鈥渢o know I鈥檓 not alone and that there鈥檚 different types of stories,鈥� from other abuse survivors.
Saturday鈥檚 keynote presenter was after being denied use of the Stand Your Ground defense for firing a warning shot after threats from her husband at that time.
She said listening to the voices of sexual violence survivors is important 鈥渂ecause people need to understand how this affects our overall capacity and evolution as a society and in the world.鈥�
鈥淚f we鈥檙e ever going to combat this problem we have to talk about it, we have to be open about it. We have to be receptive to what it does,鈥� Alexander said.
at the National Mall through Sunday.
