WOMEN'S SELF-DETERMINATION IS UNMISSABLE
The first campaign created by Arcigay for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (November 25)
On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, Arcigay launches the campaign “"NO CONTROL OVER MY BODY. WOMEN'S SELF-DETERMINATION IS UNMISSABLE."”
Six snapshots, six Polaroids, to photograph the most subtle violence, the one that limits women's self-determination and freedom over their own bodies, their sexual and emotional orientation, their gender identity, and their life choices.
The “NO CONTROL OVER MY BODY” campaign puts women's bodies back at the center: a liberated, non-performing, non-conforming body that demands to occupy a public and political space.
The bodies in the “NO CONTROL OVER MY BODY” campaign are “faceless” bodies because violence against lesbian, bisexual, trans*, intersex women and women who decide to carry a pregnancy for others, as well as the violence that affects all other women, does not take anyone in the face, trampling on the rights of all.
The violence addressed in the campaign is not only physical and psychological violence, but also violence born of a patriarchal and oppressive system fueled by stereotypes and prejudice, based on a culture of hatred and judgment, reinforced by a binary representation of society. Violence expressed through sexist, non-inclusive, disrespectful, and therefore violent language, which, cloaked in paternalism and false moralism, leads to marginalization and isolation.
The women featured in the campaign are not giving up in the face of this violence. In every snapshot—even the most striking—the message that emerges is a positive one: women are ready to fight to defend their right to self-determination. How? By stopping the hand that violates, the hand that abuses, the hand that intervenes without consent. And by choosing instead to hold the hand that welcomes, that unites, that generates love, that chooses.
Finally, the protagonists of the campaign "NO CONTROL OVER MY BODY" are women who speak out directly, rejecting any attempt at over-determination by others. Their words are amplified by the voice of Arcigay...
THE WOMEN PROTAGONISTS OF THE CAMPAIGN
Michela, lesbian
I love women. "Being" with a man won't change who I am.
“Corrective rape” of lesbian women is a hate crime.
Faraa, bisexual
I'm not confused, I'm not "easy." I'm bisexual.
Prejudice about bisexuality fuels discrimination.
Valeria, trans*
It's not a vagina that makes me a woman
Gender-based violence also affects transgender women.
Federica, intersex
I have the right to choose my own destiny
Medicalization and genital mutilation of intersex people is a violation of human rights.
Giorgia, asexual
There's nothing wrong with me. I don't need sex to be happy.
Isolation and marginalization are forms of violence.
Jackie, surrogate mother
Being a mother is a free choice. But not being one is, too.
The expression “surrogate womb” is violence that is embedded in language.
