Quilt and Documentary Highlight Rape Survivors’ Stories at Sundance Film Festival
Stitched, painted, and written onto red fabric are hundreds of stories from rape and abuse survivors through The Monument Quilt. A section of this massive, crowd-sourced quilt will be displayed at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival in conjunction with the premiere of THE HUNTING GROUND, a startling exposé of rape crimes on U.S. campuses from the Oscar-nominated filmmakers behind The Invisible War.
This unique partnership highlights the epidemic of college sexual assault and the ubiquity of the problem on campuses across the US through a culmination of individuals stories shared on film, on the quilt and across social media. Weaving together verité footage and first-person testimonies, THE HUNTING GROUND follows survivors as they pursue their education while fighting for justice — despite harsh retaliation, harassment and pushback at every level. The film and the Monument Quilt are working together to amplify awareness and harness the power of individuals stories to challenge rape culture and change policy.
The quilt will be on view in the heart of Park City at the Thomas Kearns McCarthey Gallery this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Sundance visitors can make their own square for the The Monument Quilt at a quilt-making workshop on Saturday Jan 24 from 1-4. People can also share stories and messages of support for survivors across social media using the hashtag #NotAlone and #HuntingGround.
“The Monument Quilt is a platform to not only tell our stories but work together to change how communities respond to rape. The quilt is creating a new culture where survivors are publicly supported, rather than publicly shamed,” says quilt organizer, Hannah Brancato.
WHAT: The Monument Quilt in Park City
WHERE: Thomas Kearns McCarthey Gallery
444 Main Street, Park City, UT 84060
WHEN: Friday, January 23 through Sunday, January 25. Hours, Friday, January 23rd:
11am-2pm, Saturday, January 24th: 1-4pm (quilt making workshop), Sunday, January 25th:
– 11am-2pm.
1 in 5 female undergrads will be assaulted during their four years in college. Obtaining a college degree actually increases women’s likelihood of being assaulted. “Going to college should make it more likely for you to graduate with a job. It should not make it more likely for you to graduate with the trauma of sexual assault,” says quilt organizer Rebecca Nagle. “All college students, male, female and gender queer, deserve better.”
After the Sundance premiere, The Hunting Ground and The Monument Quilt will continue to travel together for quilt displays and film screenings. The Monument Quilt will be collecting quilt squares highlighting individual stories and messages of support for survivors of campus sexual assault, and adding these to the growing quilt — both on the ground and online across social media.
In a final display in Washington DC in 2017, the Monument Quilt will blanket the lawn of the national mall to spell “NOT ALONE.”
About THE HUNTING GROUND
The Hunting Ground is a startling exposé of rape crimes on U.S. campuses, institutional cover-ups and the brutal social toll on victims and their families. The film follows survivors as they pursue their education while fighting for justice — despite harsh retaliation, harassment and pushback at every level. www.TheHuntingGroundFilm.com
About The Monument Quilt
The Monument Quilt is creating a new culture where survivors are publicly supported, rather than publicly shamed. Each individual square is made of red fabric with hand-written testimonials created by survivors and allies. Almost 300 quilts were displayed in 13 US cities in August 2014 and we will continue to display the quilt via quilt-making workshops, in public displays across the country, until a final, historic display in Washington DC blanketing the National Mall, 6,000 fabric squares will ultimately be stitched together to spell “Not Alone.” themonumentquilt.org.