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"Behind the story I tell is the one that I don't. Behind the story you hear is the one I wish I could make you hear," wrote Dorothy Allison. Those words speak to the spirit of LEAP, The Voices and Faces Project's teen-focused literary journal. Created by Chicago-area graduates of our "Stories We Tell" testimonial writing workshop for girls, ages 15-18, LEAP features poetry, memoir, creative non-fiction, and spoken-word pieces.
Our LEAP writers remind us that behind every social injustice there is a deeply personal story. And they provide a window into a world where income inequality, police brutality, sexual exploitation, and failing schools are far too common. The stories in LEAP will make you pause, feel, and think. Our hope is that these stories will also compel LEAP readers to act.
Special thanks to the JTDC Foundation, Emerson Collective, and Young Women's Leadership Charter School for helping make LEAP possible. And a big shout-out to Marline Johnson and Cami DiMauri, the LEAP mentors who are the heart and soul of this program.
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The way we see the issue of gender-based violence is shaped by popular culture. And nothing shapes our culture more than rap, rock, and hip hop. Listen in to a provocative Chicago Public Radio conversation between VOCALO's Jill Hopkins and The Voices and Faces Project's Anne K. Ream as they talk about music, misogyny, and why we need to bring back the original anti-rape music festival, Lilith Fair.
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When The Voices and Faces Project launched "The Stories We Tell," North America's first two-day testimonial writing program for those who have lived through or witnessed gender-based violence, we did so with a simple belief: that the stories of those who have lived through or witnessed violence can challenge and change the world. During a moment in our national life when politicians and pundits too often fail to confront the root causes of gender-based violence, injustice, and inequality, our "Stories We Tell" writers are using their testimonies to change minds and hearts. There is nothing beautiful about injustice, but there is something deeply beautiful about the women and girls who are speaking out about it. Their testimonies make us pause, feel, and think. Our hope is that the writing being created during "The Stories We Tell" will also compel readers to act.
Take part in a 2018 writing workshop:
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Find out more about giving the gift of change by donating to our writing workshop scholarship fund. Every $500 raised provides a full two-day scholarship for a survivor waiting to take part in our program.
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Copyright © 2018 The Voices and Faces Project All rights reserved.
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