Tim's 24 Hour Storytelling Marathon
Tim Porteus is raising money for Nadias Initiative Inc
Story
On June 21st, Fathers' Day in my country Scotland, I will be telling some stories from noon, until noon the next day. 24 seperate sessions with wee breaks in between. Each session will begin on the hour. I hope to raise some money, and awareness, about the work done by Nadia Murad's charity, Nadia's Initiative.
Fathers' Day for me is about celebrating my family. Sadly I cannot be physically with all my children this year, but at least I know where they are and that they are all safe and happy.
Yazidi girls and young women were taken by ISIS in 2014. They saw other members of their family tortured and murdered in front of their eyes. They were then subjected to brutal sexual violence and traded as slaves, while the Yazidi community was subjected to genocide. Mass graves are still being found.
Some managed to escape. Many women died in captivity after horrific abuse, some refused to submit to be sex slaves so they were publicly burnt alive in cages in front of a crowd of spectators, to make sure others were too terrified to resist.
It is beyond our comprehension what these young women and children have gone through. Many of those who have managed to escape sadly found the trauma unbearable and have commited suicide.
Many others who have returned to their community have found trying survive so difficult. Poverty, conflict and insecurity is still a daily reality for them.
Nadia Murad was one of those taken in 2014. She was subjected to brutal sexual violence. Her mother was killed as were her brothers, and her brothers' children.
She managed to escape. She fully understands the experiences of Yazidi women and girls, and in other lands where sexual violence against women is used as a method of terror in war.
Her charity aims to help those who have undergone this horrific experience. She has won Nobel Peace prize for her efforts, and she has been instrumental in creating the draft Global Code of Conduct for the Documentation & Investigation of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence.
But while sympathy is often expressed, there has been limited practical support to help the Yazidi community rebuild and survive. .
The story is so horrifying that most people don't want to think about it; they are a people we know little of, in a far off land, we can close our mind and think it's not our concern.
But it should be our concern. I'm a dad of five children, four of them daughters. I am so lucky to know my kids are safe and well. On Fathers' Day I want to do something for this small community that has suffered so much and which deserves our attention and help.
I hope to raise £500 which will pay for some trauma support, or practical help for a Yazidi woman or girl who has undergone horrific abuse.
I know times are hard and there are many causes.But please could you spare £5. as I tell some stories.
All money raised will go to Nadia's Initiative which works with women from the Yazidi community who have suffered horrific sexual and physical violence. It also promotes an awareness of sexual violence against women globally, and supporting efforts to end this.