FYS: Storytelling, Identity, and Social Change - Voices from the Battlefront lyrics

ONE in every FOUR women will experience domestic violence in their lifetime. Voices from the Battlefront is a unique storytelling project. It is not a book. It is not a collection of audio clips. Rather, it is an interactive theater performance in which the audience is encouraged to respond to what they experience. Voices from the Battlefront confronts the issue of domestic violence and seeks to tell stories of victims and survivors. The program is officially run by Roadside Theater but it is shaped by each diverse audience. Historically, domestic violence has not always been viewed as an alarming issue. Domestic violence used to be considered a private matter that should be dealt with within the family. In Brazil, it was legal, and respected, for a man to murder an unfaithful wife. Unfortunately, public awareness of the issue of domestic violence did not become relevant until the 1990s. In 1993, Lorena Bobbitt became a national symbol for domestic violence. This public example of the horrors of domestic violence severely heightened public attention towards the issue. As a result, the United Nations adopted the "Declaration of the Elimination of Violence Against Women" in 1994. Voices from the Battlefront made its debut in 2002 as part of a domestic violence workshop in Duffield, Virginia. The program was developed through Roadside Theater and their partnership with HOPE house. The play, written by Donna Porterfield, presents a combination of personal stories of domestic violence from the Appalachian mountain region of southwest Virginia with Appalachian folktales and songs that were often shared as warning stories. Since its debut, Voices from the Battlefront has been performed in southwest Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and Tennessee. The script is also available online at the Roadside Theater website. The program of Voices from the Battlefront is approximately four and a half hours long and is broken down into eight segments. What makes each performance unique is the fact that the cast and audience change. Four cast members stay the same each time; the two women that share their personal story of domestic violence and two Roadside Theater actors. The other four cast members are volunteers from the community. The only requirement is that they be women with past experience with domestic violence. The goal of this storytelling project is to raise awareness and open a discussion about the issue of domestic violence. It brings together different, even contrasting, points of view. The use of story circles allows for people to share their own experiences with domestic violence. A newsletter from HOPE house stated, "The story circles gave each woman a chance to have her voice her, to tell her own story". The workshop enables participants to experience the therapeutic effect of sharing a difficult story. It creates a safe environment in which people can voice their emotions regarding domestic violence. At the end of each workshop, participants discuss actions that would provide a**istance towards the fight against domestic violence. Voices from the Battle front allows for a new and personal perspective on domestic violence. It brings forward unheard stories and emotions and allows for people to respond. In reflection about the program, one man said, "I‘ve often considered these women's complaints trivial. I didn't understand how it (domestic violence) starts and how it escalates. I'll have to be more careful weeding out the trivial from the substantial." I think it is realizations like this that show the power of the program.