Silent Assault on Black Women Exposed March 2 at Simmons College

BOSTON (Feb 25, 2003) - The serious problem of sexual assault on black women and girls is the focus of a searing documentary to be screened Sunday, March 2, at 3 p.m. in the Simmons College third floor conference center, 300 The Fenway. The film is free and open to the public.

"No!," a full-length groundbreaking documentary, exposes the collective silence of the black community when black women and girls are raped or sexually assaulted. Though black women comprise 7% of the U.S. population, they make up 27% of the rape and sexual assault victims, and they are raped at a higher rate than white women. For every one white woman that reports her rape, at least five white women do not. And yet, for every one black woman that reports her rape, at least 15 black women do not.

The film features interviews and performances by activists and scholars like Dr. Johnnetta Cole, president emeritus of Spelman College. The event will also feature a Moon Wisdom Healing Dance, to be used as a healing method for women surviving rape and sexual assault.

The film and dance, in celebration of Women's History Month, is presented by the Boston Black Women's Health Institute and sponsored by the Simmons College Africana Studies Department, the Simmons College Institute for Leadership and Change, ABCD Health Services, Haymarket People's Fund and the Boston Women's Fund, among others.

For more information, contact Diane Hammer at the Simmons Institute for Leadership and Change at 617-521-2480. Note to reporters, if you'd like to cover the event, contact Katie Fiermonti in the public relations office at 617-521-2369.

Simmons College is a nationally recognized, small, private, predominantly women's university in the heart of Boston. It has undergraduate programs for women and graduate programs for women and men.

CONTACT

Katie Fiermonti
617.521.2369

 

 

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