ABOUT US > MISSION STATEMENT
Our mission is to empower Asian and other communities to end female genital cutting and create positive social change through dialogue, education, and collaboration based on community involvement.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES:
- To bring an end to the practice of female genital cutting (also known as female genital mutilation or female circumcision), which is a violation of human rights and an act of sexual assault.
- To enable a culture in which a woman/girl’s body and female sexuality is not feared or suppressed, but embraced as normal.
- To recognize and emphasize the values of consent and a child/woman’s right over her own body.
ABOUT US > OUR STORY
Sahiyo began in early 2015 as a conversation between five women who felt strongly about the ritual of female genital cutting (khatna) in the Bohra community. The group includes a social worker, a researcher, two filmmakers, and a journalist. Each individual had already been speaking out, in their own ways, against the practice of khatna.
As their collaboration grew, they realized the need for an organized, informed forum within the community that could help drive a movement to bring an end to khatna. That is how Sahiyo, the organization, was born. Sahiyo is dedicated to empowering Asian communities to end female genital cutting (FGC) and create positive social change. By working towards an FGC-free world, Sahiyo aims to recognize and emphasize the values of consent and a child’s/woman’s right over her own body, and to enable a culture in which female sexuality is not feared or suppressed but embraced as normal. Today, Sahiyo has divided into two legal entities - Sahiyo U.S & Sahiyo India.
Sahiyo is the Bohra Gujarati word for ‘saheliyo,’ or friends, and reflects the organization’s mission to engage in dialogue with the community to find a collective solution towards ending FGC or khatna.
ABOUT US > AWARDS & DISTINCTIONS
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Nari Smata Manch recognized ‘Sahiyo’ for its contributions to build a dialogue around FGC with the ‘Daughter of Maharashtra’ Award in 2016.
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A Sahiyo blog contributor’s essay about her personal experience of FGC won South Asia’s first ever Laadli Media and Advertising Award for Gender Sensitivity, founded by Population First in 2017.
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Sahiyo received a Shoor Veer Award in 2018.
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Sahiyo co-founder Aarefa Johari and independent writer-activist Aysha Mahmood won the Laadli Media and Advertising Award for Gender Sensitivity, 2018 for their investigation revealing the prevalence of FGC in Kerala.
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Sahiyo was recognized by Population Reference Bureau as one of six inspiring organizations working on ending FGM/C in 2018.
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In 2019, Sahiyo was awarded a winner (1 of 3) the ViiV Healthcare #EndFGM Positive Action Challenge. The #ENDFGM Positive Action Challenge supports innovative interventions to bring about a sustained change in attitudes and social norms towards ending FGC.
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In 2022, Mohammad Chappalwala won the Donald A. Strong Man of The Year Award from the Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation for his work with supporting men to end FGC. Learn more about his work here.
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In 2023 Mariya Taher received the Global Woman Award for her policy work to end FGM/C in 2023 and was recognized as a 2023 L'Oréal Paris USA Women of Worth honore
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In 2024 Mariya Taher receives the 2024 Champion of Change Award from the Asian Women's Shelter and Amy Hill founder and director of Silence Speaks Storytelling, has received the Lisa C. Bruch Woman of the Year award from the Global Women Peace Foundation.
ABOUT US > TIMELINE
2015
2015
- Founded in December 2015
- Launched undertaking of a global study on Khatna/FGC among Dawoodi Bohra women
2015
2016
2016
- Participated in first-ever conference for Asian anti-FGC advocates in Singapore, organised by Wadi and Aware
- Launched ‘Each One Reach One’ campaign with WeSpeakOut
- Launched ‘I am Bohra’ photo campaign
- Spoke at 60th Annual Commission on the Status of Women Conference
- Organized a program, along with University Women’s Association (UWA), the Poona Women’s Council, the Family Planning Association of India, Women’s Studies Center, ILS Law College, Pune Women’s Forum, Miloon Saryajani, Nari Samata Manch, General Practitioners Association, Speak Out on FGM and Sassoon Hospital, to create dialogue amongst stakeholders on female genital cutting in Pune
- Spoke at Women Deliver Conference in Copenhagen
- Partnered with Breakthrough to promote stories from survivors and their allies on Breakthrough’s digital storytelling platform, THE G WORD: Transforming gender norms, one story at a time.
- Wallace Global Fund awarded grant to support organizational setup
- Hosted media workshop with International Association of Women in Radio and Television (IAWRT), to train journalists on how to sensitively report on FGC
- Participated in the “Gender Justice” panel session at Islamic Society of North America Annual Conference
- Led discussion at the Justice and Peace Commission in Mumbai
- Participated in End Violence Against Girls: Summit on FGM/C in Washington, DC
2017
2017
- Launched Change.org petition (in collaboration with 33 organizations from around the world) calling on the U.N. and other international bodies to invest more research and support towards ending FGC in Asia
- Released media toolkit to help media report on the FGC sensitively.
- Released results of a two-year exploratory study on FGC within Dawoodi Bohra community. The study showed 81% of the survey participants wanted FGC to end within the community
- Participated as Difficult Dialogues, an annual conference on issues of national interest in Goa, India. Organized in affiliation with University College London
- Held first Thaal Pe Charcha (loosely translated as ‘discussions over food’), in which 16 Bohra women were invited to discuss — the challenges of living as girls and women in the Dawoodi Bohra community
- Released an investigative report that brought to light FGC was occurring in Kerala
- Joined Alliance for Inclusive Muslims, a global coalition working again Islamaphobia, radicalism within Islam, violence against women, and other human rights abuses
- Spoke at Hilton Humanitarian Symposium in Los Angeles, California
- Hosted a roundtable with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to discuss how to work in a way that is culturally appropriate, with children and families in the state, in cases involving FGC
- Attended the European Forum to Build Bridges on FGM to partake in transnational, cross-border cooperation on ending FGC globally
- Spotlighted at We The Women on a panel “Unveiling the horror of Female Genital Cutting” in Mumbai, India
2017
2018
2018
- Hosted first-ever U.S. Bohra Anti-FGC Activists Retreat to strengthen relationships amongst advocates and build collaborative approaches towards working to end FGC in the U.S. This was followed by the first Bohra Anti-FGC Activists Retreat in Mumbai, for activists located all over India.
- Released results from study on learning how to support Anti-FGC Activist in their advocacy work
- Partnered with Women in Film and Television International India to organise first-ever on-ground storytelling event “Storytelling with Sahiyo,” featuring four critically-acclaimed actors performing narrative readings of survivor stories, in Mumbai, India
- Hosted Sahiyo Stories workshop in collaboration with StoryCenter, to bring together nine women from across the United States to create personalized digital stories that narrate experiences of female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C).
- Second US Thaal pe Charcha launched in Berkeley, CA
- Inaugural screening of Sahiyo Stories in Oakland, California, followed by screenings in Massachusetts and Washington DC
- Sahiyo US U.S. Advisory Board established to guide direction of organization
2019
2019
- Hosted special Thaal Pe Charcha “Iftar” dinner in Mumbai with 24 women and men from Bohra community during Ramzan
- Sahiyo India hosted Second Annual Activists’ Retreat in Mumbai
- Sahiyo U.S. hosted Second Annual Activist Retreat in New York
- Faces for Change photo campaign launched to highlight survivors of FGC
- Sahiyo supports planning pre-conference on FGC at 2019 Women Deliver conference in Vancouver
- Co-hosted inaugural roundtable to raise awareness of FGC in Massachusetts and build a state coalition
- Launched Male Ally Campaign
- Sahiyo India took part in FemmeCon, India’s first women’s health festival organized by TheaCare.. The exhibition displayed photos and quotes of FGC survivors who participated in Sahiyo’s Faces for Change campaign.
- In 2019, Sahiyo hosted three workshops for the Voices to End FGM/C project: a pilot online workshop that allowed for participants from all over the world, another in Asheville, North Carolina (partnered with Threads for Wellbeing), and the last was held in Washington DC (partnered with George Washington University School of Public Health).
2019
2020
2020
- Spoke on FGM/C at 63rd annual conference of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, AICOG in Lucknow, India
- 27 new digital stories from Voices to End FGM/C released on February 6, International Zero Tolerance Day on FGM/C
- Due to COVID-19, Sahiyo changed the format for the third annual Activist Retreats in the U.S. and India to virtual formats
- Partnered with API-GBV and U.S. End FGM/C Network for webinar aimed towards educating gender-based violence advocates on FGM/C in the U.S. to increase capacity of care for survivors
- Hosted Learning about Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in the Classroom, a webinar to discuss FGM/C, debunk common misconceptions, and explore the use of nationwide classroom education as a tool for FGM/C prevention
- Hosted Moving Towards Sexual Pleasure and Emotional Healing After FGC, a webinar about the mental and emotional consequences of FGC
- Sahiyo expanded our community outreach and education program in 2020, with 30+ events hosted or participated in. Events included: Lesley University: Violence Against Women: Violance, Resistance, and Change, 2020 King's College London Virtual Symposium, SHEFFA: Virtual Workshop, October 2020 NA&E Caucus, Fast Tracking Sustainable Development Goal 5: U.S. End FGM/C Network, USC: A Girl From Mogadishu, Communication for Change Festival, AAFP National Conference on Family Medicine, 2020 Council Great City School Conference, Intesaab 2020 Virtual Conference, Taboo Conversations: RAHMA, 2020 Virtual Student Experiences, and NARHC 2020.
- Sahiyo launched Dear Maasi column. Maasi is the word for aunt in Gujarati, and gives people an opportunity to anonymously submit questions about sex and relationships.
- Continued Thaal Pe Charcha in 2020: one in-person in February, the first virtual Thaal Pe Charcha in July, and another virtual TPC in October
- Launched More Than a Survivor campaign on November 25th, releasing 20 interviews with FGC survivors as part of 16 Days of Activism
- Sahiyo collaborated with partner organizations that attended Women Deliver in Vancouver in 2019, to establish the Global Platform For Action to End FGM/C
2021
2021
- Held the Art, Activism, and Healing: In Conversation Around FGC
- Launched Bhaiyo, Sahiyo’s male ally initiative, to create a space where male allies can collaborate, spark dialogue, and spread information about this form of gender-based violence and its harmful impacts. Bhaiyo’s first initiative was Everyone’s Responsibility: Discussing the Role Male Allies Play In Preventing Female Genital Cutting. Bhaiyo also carried out a Father’s Day inspired public awareness campaign that saw 17 submissions from male advocates from over six countries
- Held Addressing FGC in the Clinic: A Dialogue Between Survivors and Health Care Professionals
- Hosted NGO CSW #65 Parallel Event, Using Storytelling to Shift Social Norms and Prevent FGM/C with Silence Speaks
- Held Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting: An Under-Recognized form of Gender-Based Violence in the U.S. with API-GBV and the U.S. End FGM/C Network
- Hosted Critical Intersections: Anti-Racism and Female Genital Cutting (FGC)to explore how FGC survivors and advocates for change often have to push back against racist narratives in their work, and in their journey toward healing, as well as how systemic racism can delay substantial change on this issue.
- Established Connecticut Coalition to end FGM/C to support creation of state legislation to protect children against FGC
- Created Thaal Pe Charcha toolkit to help community members, community organizations, and others host their own events to discuss FGC
- United States Department of Justice’s Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) awarded Asian Women’s Shelter, along with subgrantees Sahiyo and StoryCenter, a three-year grant to expand Voices to End FGM/C project
- Held 4th annual Activist Retreat virtually.
- Held Moving Towards Sexual Pleasure and Emotional Healing after Female Genital Cutting (FGC) Part 2, a webinar on the impact of FGC on mental health and sexuality, and how survivors can begin to move towards healing
- Sahiyo significantly expanded community outreach and education programs in 2021, with 40+ events hosted or participated in. Events included: : The Future Shakers Initiative: The Pre-summit of #EndFGM Global Conference 2021, How to talk about FGM with AIDOS, Sahiyo and CoP FGM: Law and FGM in North America, FAWCO and Sahiyo Webinar, MAHYC Teacher Training, FGM for the Law, Justice and Development Week
2021
2022
2022
- StoryCenter and Sahiyo virtually hosted sixth annual Voices to End FGM/C digital storytelling workshop
- CARE Atlanta Global Innovation Hub hosted webinar on reproductive rights and justice, and invited Sahiyo’s U.S. to speak about FGC in the U.S.
- Global Platform for Action to End FGM/C, of which Sahiyo is a member, hosted a webinar at 66th NGO Commission on the Status of Women,Engaging Men to End Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting
- Launched public awareness campaign, Each Bhaiyo, Reach Bhaiyo, to engage male allies to start conversations about FGC
- Held guest lecture for students in Mumbai
- Organized inaugural training on FGC for Asian Women’s Shelter as part of a three-year project to integrate knowledge of FGC into larger gender-based violence prevention services
- Held 5th annual Activist Retreat
- Continued to address a number of angles around FGC through webinars on topics such as climate change, and LGBTQ+ community (A Quiet Violence).
- Hosted or participated in webinars including Understanding Social Norms to End Female Genital Cutting, How to Stop the Rising Trend of Medicalisation of Female Genital Cutting in Asia, , CARE Atlanta Global Innovation Hub webinar, Moving Connecticut Ahead - passing state legislation.
2023
2023
- A report titled Bhaiyo: A Male Ally Initiative to Support Ending Female Genital Cutting was released, highlighting the program impact from 2021 through 2022.
- Connecticut Governor and Lieutenant Governor issued a Proclamation and Citation to recognize Feb 6th, International Day of Zero Tolerance of FGM/C in response to advocacy from the Connecticut Coalition to End FGM/C, which Sahiyo helped cofound.
- For the first time, Sahiyo held a virtual silent auction to raise $15K on International Women's Day, March 8th.
- The Washington Coalition to End FGM/C, in partnership with Sahiyo, The U.S. End FGM/C Network, Children’s Alliance, and Mother Africa, hosted and event titled, Protecting Children in Washington State from Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting.
- Seven videos from the seventh Voices to End FGM/C workshop are released.
- Washington state Governor Jay Inslee signed Senate Bill 5453 On April 20th, 2023, concerning FGC into law, due to advocacy from the Washington Coalition to End FGM/C, which Sahiyo cofounded.
- Voices to End FGM/C program initiates Healing Circles for Voices Alumni in partnership with the Asian Women’s Shelter.
- More Than a Survivor: Celebrating Queer Joy Campaign public awareness campaigns uplift Queer FGC survivors.
- FGC is recognized as a form of sexual assault by receiving grant from the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act.
- Sahiyo, the U.S. Network to End FGM/C, and RTI International create training for social workers on female genital cutting (FGC), with support from the National Association of Social Workers to provide continuing education units to licensed social-work professionals.
- The Massachusetts Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners and Sahiyo host trainings on FGM/C at the School Nurses International Conference.
- The Global Platform for Action to End FGM/C (of which Sahiyo is a member), organized the 2023 Women Deliver Pre-Conference on FGM/C and launched the Kigali Declaration.
- The first of three reports in the critical intersections project, Examining the Current State of Critical Intersections: Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting and Social oppressions, is published.
- The eighth Voices to END FGM/C Workshop held in California with nine participants and resources created to allow others to host screenings utilizing the Voices videos.
- South Asian SOAR and Sahiyo trained service providers in the gender-based violence sector working with South Asian communities throughout the country.
- Sahiyo cohosted a legislative briefing on FGM/C with the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity and Opportunity (CWCSEO) and Connecticut Representative Jillian Gilchrest.
- Training sessions based on Critical Intersections research begin to actualize research findings. First presentation given to The Girl Generation.
- The Voices to End FGM/C podcast is launched and available on Voices website, Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
2023
2024
- Nine videos from the eighth Voices to End FGM/C project are released.
- Sahiyo co-organized “Preventing FGM/C in Connecticut – Why Comprehensive Laws Matter” panel. Special guests and co-hosts included Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz and the Governor’s Council on Women & Girls.
- The World Bank invited Sahiyo to host a screening of Voices to End FGM/C videos in honor of International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting.
- The Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) invited The Milken Institute School of Public Health alongside Sahiyo U.S. and others to become technical assistance providers on FGM/C to service-providers who receive Office of Violence Against Women grants.
- In partnership with the San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium (SF-DVC), Sahiyo delivered an "FGC-101" training to 16 advocates and community-based attorneys from across the San Francisco Bay area.
- Examining Intersections Between Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting And Social Oppressions: A Mixed Methods Study, the second of three reports from our Critical Intersections Research Project, is published.
- Equality Now released trailer for “The Beginning,” Asia’s first ever fiction film on FGC. Written and directed by Sahiyo’s co-founder Insia Dariwala.
- Voices to End FGM/C Screening Guide, an educational resource developed by Sahiyo, Silence Speaks, and the Asian Women’s Shelter, launches.
- The Global Platform for Action to End FGM/C hosted a parallel event at the 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68) titled, From Rhetoric to Reality: Closing the Funding Gap to End FGM/C.
- WA DOH awards Sahiyo, the U.S. End FGM/C Network, and Mother Africa the Prevention of and Response to Female Genital Cutting (FGC) contract to provide expert consultation to DOH staff to implement SSB 5453 and deliver FGC training to state agency staff, survivors, community members impacted by FGC, and health care providers, among other audiences across Washington. Events in connection to this partnership were hosted in April and June of 2024.
- Sahiyo continues training tied to our Critical Intersections Research Project, including to the World Bank, Equality Now and
- Sahiyo U.S. held a webinar educating media professionals on how to report on FGM/C in an impactful, fair, and sensitive manner. Special guest was Washington State Senator Karen Keiser who sponsored the bill on FGM/C that passed in April 2023.
- The Population Institute published its "Behind Closed Doors: Exposing and Addressing Harmful Gender-Based Practices in the United States” report, which Sahiyo served as advisor to.
- Sahiyo U.S. expanded training and technical assistance programs, hosting trainings to the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault (ICASA).
- Bhaiyo launched a month-long public awareness campaign to uplift the importance of male voices and allies in ending female genital cutting.
- Ten new Voices videos are produced after Sahiyo holds it ninth Voices to End FGM/C workshop.
- Sahiyo was invited to the the fifty-sixth session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, Switzerland to speak on a panel about cross-border and transnational female genital cutting (FGC), alongside high-level officials.
- The eighth annual Activists Retreat takes place.
- The Survivor and Community Engagement Toolkit launches, created by Sahiyo and RTI International. The resource provides guidance on best practices for outreach to FGM/C-impacted communities in the U.S..