For our second blog post as a part of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV), we had the opportunity to interview Heddy Lahmann, a Bond Street Theatre member. Heddy is a professor of International Education at New York University and wrote her dissertation about the work BST did in Afghanistan, focusing on the use of creative arts for youth development and peacebuilding in conflict and crisis-affected settings. She has been with the company for over 10 years! If you would like to read a more personal account of how Heddy got involved with theatre and BST in particular, the links below feature two blog posts Heddy wrote in 2012 and in 2015 when she was in Afghanistan.
https://bondstreetblog.blogspot.com/2012/08/intern-spotlight-heddy-lahman.html
https://bondstreetblog.blogspot.com/2015/10/changing-perceptions-in-kabul.html
Afghanistan: Then and Now
One of the projects Heddy worked on is the Creativity in Action project that has mobilized over 375 youth from 25 Afghan provinces to learn leadership skills and implement local community improvement projects. Groups underwent rigorous leadership training in their home provinces through workshop sessions using theatre and arts exercises to foster creative problem-solving, leadership, and improved communication skills. Each group created a Community Profile illuminating what they love about their community and the issues that need correction.
Phase two brought two groups at a time to Kabul from two different provinces – often representing different ethnicities, religions, or languages – for a week-long brainstorming and training session in community development, advocacy, and proposal-writing. During that week youth teams worked on their Action Plans while living, learning, socializing and working toward creating a unified Afghanistan. In a country divided by ethnic, linguistic, and customary differences, these exchanges built a sense of community and cohesion across regional boundaries.
Together with a female Afghan Filmmaker, Heddy produced a mini-documentary gathering videos and photos from the Afghani trainers and youth:
Unfortunately, after the Taliban takeover in 2021, these kinds of projects have been banned or forced to go underground, and so much progress has been lost. Women are denied basic rights, and voices speaking up for women’s rights are targeted and silenced. However, not all hope is lost. Heddy shared that she is currently working on a project using edu-tainment (educative entertainment) through educational television programming and distance learning to support education for girls in Afghanistan – especially secondary school girls who have been barred from attending school under the Taliban..
Lessons Learned from the Field - Gender-Based Violence
On the occasion of the 16 Days of Activism Against GBV, we asked Heddy what she learned from having worked in the field. She shared two insights with us: one from when she worked in Afghanistan THEN, and one in relation to the project she is working on NOW. While in Afghanistan, she was surprised and encouraged that there were many young men who wanted to contribute to work on addressing women’s rights issues related to GBV. When she asked them about it, they said that they were motivated to want to create change to support women because these issues directly affected their communities and families.Through education and access to the internet, they understood that it could be different and wanted to be a part of making that change in their communities.
With regard to the current edu-tainment project she’s working on in Afghanistan, she explained that providing educational opportunities for girls in Afghanistan right now is (if indirectly) attempting to address gender-based violence. She explained that denying girls and women their right to education and work is in fact gender-based violence, even if it may not be physical or visible violence in the short-term. Denial of education and the right to work is psychological and emotional violence, which has long-term effects that restrict women’s life opportunities, choices, and ability to protect themselves.
In addition to her work in Afghanistan, Heddy also highlighted her time spent addressing issues that women and girls face here in New York City. Alongside Ilanna, another BST member whose work we’ll be highlighting next week, Heddy created and performed in a BST show called Amelia and Her Paper Tigers. A fun-filled educational adventure, Amelia and Her Paper Tigers is a look at the life of Amelia Earhart, who fought all odds to follow her dream of becoming an aviatrix, setting numerous flying records along the way. Her tale of passion and persistence is told through comedy, music, audience participation and circus arts, serving as an inspiration to young people of all ages to follow their dreams. Optional post-performance workshops further the exploration and provide creative tools to address fear. While not directly about GBV, this show depicts a strong female narrative of a real woman who pushed against gender norms and the roles/capabilities typically associated with women at the time—and even now.
This is a perfect example of how there is always work that can be done bringing the arts to young audiences to help them think about the world differently, whether at home or overseas. To hear more about Amelia and Her Paper Tigers, come back next week, when we’ll be featuring Heddy’s partner-in-crime, Ilanna!
