SHaME x Winnie M Li: Literature and Sexual Trauma: Authors Writing Their Lived Experience

On 14 April 2021, SHaME continued its Writer in Residence Programme with a public event featuring a distinguished panel of award-winning authors who spoke about transforming their own lived experiences of sexual violence into different forms of literature. Our guests were graphic writer Una, philosopher and memoirist Susan J. Brison and poet Shivanee Ramlochan.
Literature and Sexual Trauma: Authors Writing Their Lived Experience was the second of three public events in the WiR Programme, a collaboration with survivor-centred arts organisation Clear Lines.
Professor Joanna Bourke introduced the event and we were joined by an audience of participants from academia, activism and the arts from all over the world. Each panel member read powerful extracts from their published work (see resources below) and participated in a fascinating discussion about the ways in which the arts can help academics and the public to think differently about sexual violence.
We created a Safeguarding Statement for this event, which you may want to consult: shame.bbk.ac.uk/wp-content/up...
SHaME x Winnie M Li Writer in Residence Programme:
Between March and May 2021, Winnie M. Li joined The SHaME Project as a Writer-in-Residence. She is a novelist and activist, who curated an exciting series of panels, talks, and workshops for the SHaME team and the wider public. These events explored the roles that creative writing and narrative can play in how both academics and society at large understand the topic of sexual violence. As a rape survivor herself, Winnie is dedicated to fostering survivor-centred dialogues and founded Clear Lines, the UK’s first-ever festival using the arts and discussion to address sexual assault and consent.
Find out more about The SHaME Project at shame.bbk.ac.uk/.