ywrape crisis center: 2011 Bergen County Clothesline Project

Survivors Break Their Silence via Clothesline Project Exhibit  

Over 1,800 T-shirts were displayed on “The Green” across from the Bergen County Courthouse in Hackensack as the Bergen County Clothesline Project held its 18th annual exhibit on September 14th.

The exhibit was sponsored by the YWCA Bergen County Rape Crisis Center in partnership with the Bergen County Department of Human Services, Division of Alternatives to Domestic Violence, Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, Office of Victim/Witness Advocacy, Bergen Family Center, National Council of Jewish Women, Bergen County Section, and Shelter Our Sisters.

This powerful display of artwork, which featured shirts created by survivors or their significant others, was designed to allow the community to bear witness to violence against women, men, and children. Guest speakers included Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan; Sgt. Alan Lustmann, Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office; David Cohen, Division Head, Alternatives to Domestic Violence; and Rosemarie D'Alessandro, whose seven-year-old daughter Joan was raped and murdered in 1973.

The speakers praised the work done by the participating community organizations, and pledged to continue their efforts on behalf of survivors of sexual and domestic violence. “Each one of these shirts tells a story,” said Donovan. “We need to continue to tell the stories of these survivors, and to use them as a catalyst for continuing to work to prevent domestic and sexual violence in our community.”

The National Council of Jewish Women loaned several pieces from their Silent Witnesses project to the exhibit. The Silent Witnesses are silhouetted figures that represent women and children who were murdered in acts of domestic violence.

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